Pros and cons of teleworking and 8 tips for working from home

Most of us are not used to the Teleworking, however, as a result of the current situation, many workers have to work from home. For most of us, this is a new challenge, something we have never seen ourselves in the need to face, but now is the time. Actually, teleworking means nothing more than a more flexible form of work organization to carry out the performance of the work activity without the physical presence of the worker in the company.

Advantages of teleworking

Teleworking involves many profits for teleworkers, since they save time and money by not having to travel to the workplace, they have greater flexibility in working hours and also greater autonomy. In addition, its work gives it a more independent character. In Spain, we have the best connectivity conditions for teleworking, with more than 10 million FTTH (optical fiber to the home), which positions the country among the world leaders in connectivity, such as Japan or South Korea.

Disadvantages of teleworking

On the other hand, teleworking also presents some snags for the person who develops it, such as a greater ease of being demotivated for professional work, reduced ability to concentrate, less contact with other people and loss of sociability, less team collaboration with other workers, etc. Therefore, considering that a large part of the population is not used to this system, it is important to take into account some recommendations and advice that make the practice of teleworking a positive activity for both the company and the worker.

Tips for successful teleworking

1. Select the most suitable location for teleworking

It is important that you establish a stable work space where you can sit and work without distractions, if possible with light and exclusively to carry out your work. The ideal would be to reproduce office conditions as accurately as possible.

2. Dress as you would if you went to the office

Never stay in your pajamas. Dressing in the clothes you usually wear to go to work helps your brain to go into “work mode”. This will make it easier for you to focus, increase your productivity and prevent you from having to work longer because of procrastination.

3. Learn to organize yourself

It's important to keep a daily schedule, otherwise, you'll try to do all the tasks and the result will be to complete none. It's simply a matter of knowing how to manage the independence that this modality brings to decision-making, giving rise to a new routine.

4. Set real goals

It's no use setting yourself a lot of goals if you don't know if you can achieve them. That's why objectives have to be measurable, attainable and, therefore, realistic. Setting a good goal during the working day helps us to be more energetic during work and prevents us from losing control of time and having to extend the working day.

5. Keep in touch with your colleagues

It is important not to abandon communication with other employees and to let communication flow, since working from home can cause the feeling of being totally isolated. A call to colleagues will increase your productivity and will keep you feeling that you are part of a team, as if you were all still in the same place of work.

6. Set your working hours

In this situation, everyone must be organized in the most convenient way, so you will have to consider whether your working day will be more productive on a strict schedule in the morning or in the afternoon. In addition, remember that complying with your work schedule is as important as completing the tasks scheduled for each day.

7. Establish rest periods

It is possible that, not being used to working at home, our brain is left collapsed and we don't know where to go. It's time to take a short break so you can focus on the task at hand, but don't overdo it during this period. It is recommended to take a break of 5 or 10 minutes every 40 minutes to eat something and stretch your legs.

8. Separate leisure from work obligations

By spending all day at home and doing your professional work in the same place, you are likely to exceed the time you dedicate to the task or that you are more aware of new tasks. This is a mistake, once you have fulfilled your schedule you must dedicate your time to other activities leaving space for leisure, family, household chores, etc. All these recommendations will help us to avoid some of the most common mistakes in teleworking that make us lose efficiency, such as thinking that there are no schedules, not having the right tools, doing household chores at the same time as work...

It's also important to take maximum care safety in teleworking, for which we must make regular backups, access secure websites, take care of passwords, update systems and applications, use antivirus on work computers... These are important issues that require special attention. If we are clear about how we should act and what are the keys to teleworking, we will be able to successfully cope with this situation and soon to be able to return to normal.