How are you finding this new world of homeworking?
We’re obviously not missing the daily commute, working in our slippers is quite pleasant, and being able to fit in a dog walk in the lunch hour is a bonus, but to be perfectly honest, 10 months into this new-normal, the gloss of remote working is starting to come off.
If you’re an accountant or a data analyst, working from home must tick all the boxes, but if your job involves any form of idea sharing or creating, then going it alone is almost certainly hampering your creative potential. A survey by Marketing Week conducted at the start of the pandemic found that 71% of marketers admitted their creativity was suffering as a result of remote working.
Creativity comes from experiences, sights, and sounds. The walk through town to the office, the catch up by the water cooler, the conversation you overheard on the train home – all of these daily interactions shape the way we think and can be the inspiration for creative ideas.
Sadly, although being in an office is vital for creative professionals, the return to our desks and meeting rooms is unlikely to come anytime soon.
So how can you make sure the creative juices keep flowing while confined to your kitchen table?
Get out and about
Whether you live in town or country, if your current lockdown rules allow, get out and about. Walk the dog, pop into a coffee shop, drop round to your neighbour’s garden.
Getting away from your own four walls will make sure you’re experiencing different sights and sounds.
Get moving
If home-working is turning you into a couch potato, it’s time to fit in some exercise. Research has shown that being sedentary can seriously curtail innovation and creativity. It can also be a major cause of health issues including anxiety and depression.
Socialise – remotely
A Friday night end of week catch up in the pub is confined to our memory bank for now but there’s no reason to only connect with your colleagues during the 9 – 5.
Use Zoom and Teams for fun as well as work. How about a remote wine tasting, a pub quiz, or a virtual treasure hunt? Anything that can bring laughter and fun into the work environment will do wonders for you and the team’s creativity and productivity.
Step away from the email
Email may be an easy way to communicate with colleagues and clients but you’re not robots. Human beings are meant to have social interactions and doing so helps them be happier, healthier, and more creative.
If you have something to discuss, pick up the phone. Telephone conversations are more natural, more relaxed, and will force you to discuss something other than the work agenda in your communications.
The reality is that the Covid situation doesn’t look like it’s going to be changing anytime soon so stay positive, embrace the new normal, make your surroundings as joyful as they can be, stay connected with friends and colleagues and look to find inspiration in the simple things in life.
