The line between work and home life has disappeared as the Covid-19 pandemic forces people to work from home.

How do people stay ‘sane’ under these circumstances? How are people coping with the transition to remote work? Is attention being paid to everyone’s well-being?

Working from home is a lot more complex than just making a decision to work remotely and hooking up the computer. There are many variables to keep in mind to make working from home a positive experience.

As social distancing and having teams work from home can create potentially adverse effects, there are few things you can do, as a leader, which can help create an environment in which everyone can work at their best.

Acknowledge the circumstances

Some 2.6 billion people worldwide are experiencing some sort of lockdown or quarantine, which is affecting their daily lives, routines, family obligations and work.

These circumstances are challenging even for those who have experience in working from home.

According to the World Economic Forum, a secondary epidemic of burnout and stress-related illnesses could occur in the coming months.

And where people are quarantining with children, the impact on mental health is even more pronounced.

Studies show that 28% of parents in quarantine are presented with ‘mental health-related traumatic disorders’. Psychologists, therefore, stress the importance of taking action now to counteract the harmful effects.

Understand the changes in time management and productivity

The first step is to understand that these circumstances will affect productivity. We must be deeply and personally honest with ourselves about what is happening.

Uncertainty, stress and new tasks make the brain function in unusual ways, and that energy will be channelled in a different way from what the individual is used to. It will be a new way of recognising ourselves.

It is not possible for someone to produce the same output as when they are working in the office because they are at home with an entirely new set of circumstances to deal with.

In this context, discussing time management is fundamental. Leaders have to be empathetic and put themselves in the other person’s shoes. They also have to recognise their own reality, accept it and inform others about it.

How can productivity be adjusted for this new set of circumstances? It will be a personal challenge to find a balance between work, leisure, childcare and chores, whereas a major organisational challenge will involve understanding the different realities and creating flexible processes to accommodate new circumstances.

Discuss healthy home offices

Marlene Pruvost, Master of psychology and head of operations at Argentinian human resource consultancy Consultora Gestal said that remote work requires everyone to adopt certain habits to decrease the sensation that the line between someone’s professional and personal life has disappeared.

“Therefore, it is important for people and companies to familiarise themselves with the best practices to incorporate in order to maintain a stable and productive pace of work that takes everyone’s well-being into account.

“It is even more important to talk about these practices, especially at this time when a great many people are required to work from home for the first time and change their habits because of the pandemic,” she added.

Which factors affect a person’s well-being the most during quarantine?

“What most people experience is a generalised increase in anxiety and stress. This is due to the high degree of uncertainty that the pandemic has caused and the potential impact or threat to factors that are vital for people (health and economic livelihood).

This results in greater irritability, mood swings, an increase in unhealthy behaviours such as bingeing on food, alcohol or cigarettes, problems with insomnia, muscle tension, headaches, feelings of loneliness and more.”

What can companies or leaders do to promote their teams’ well-being?

“Remote work on its own can increase the feeling of isolation, and this feeling can be amplified if people cannot replace the lack of social contact at work with social activities outside the home.

Encourage verbal communication and healthy home habits

To mitigate the feeling of isolation at work, leaders can, whenever possible, encourage verbal communication (by phone or video call).

Use instant messaging and email as a supplement or when email/instant messaging is the best form of communication.

Make sure you listen to every team member’s contributions and invite them to actively participate in meetings.

“Leaders must also promote healthy habits in terms of food, sleep schedule, physical exercise and breaks during the workday and after.”

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