Home Office at Metapack: After hours
Working remotely from home means that the balance between work and personal life is shaken. Meanwhile, it is extremely important to keep it at the right level. Check how Metapackers deal with this challenge.
In our survey, we asked our employees a supposedly innocent question: What is the first thing you do after closing your business laptop? What we really wanted to do was make sure that Metapackers were taking good care of themselves after hours.
First things first
On a daily basis, we offer our employees subsidies for the sports they choose, we organize integration events, we provide up to 30 days of vacation and one additional day off for volunteering. During quarantine, however, it is not possible to take full advantage of these options.
So, metapackers cope as they can, and what do they actually do when they turn off their work computers? The largest number of similar responses concerned one thing…
"I make dinner."
"I eat lunch."
"Dinner."
"I run to wash my hands for dinner!"
"I don't have a business laptop, but when I disconnect the company's VPN, I get up and go to lunch :)"
"I'm going for lunch and a walk."
"Dinner!"
The second most common answer was a walk – with a dog, children, family or alone in a quiet area. We conducted the survey in a period when such strict restrictions as ban on leaving the house had not yet been implemented. Then the forests and parks were shut down. Today, we can walk in forests and parks again, which the Metapackers must have received with great relief.
"I go for a walk with the family."
"Walk in peace and quiet."
"Going outside, walking."
"A walk in a remote area :)"
"Walk."
"Going out with the dog :)"
"A stroller and a walk with my son."
"Going for a walk with the dog, who at first didn't understand why I was home and I didn't have time for him."
"I'm going for a walk, lunch can wait."
Form work laptop to a private one
It turned out, however, that not all Metapackers can cut themselves off completely from their work. Some spend more time on professional duties than in the office. Others from the work computer switch to their private one.
"I unplug my work laptop and turn on my personal computer."
"Switching company monitors from a company laptop to a personal desktop computer. Ah, and the mouse and keyboard. "
"I don't have a laptop :P Unfortunately, instead of leaving the computer, it stays in front of it. I know this is a mistake, but it's hard to take a break sometimes. "
"I don't close it :)"
"I don't have a laptop, but the first thing I do after disconnecting from the VPN and closing the remote desktop is playing computer games."
"I fire up my private laptop."
"Clicking on Twitter and checking official announcements from mz, bbc, cnn, reuters, and statistical data."
"I don't close my laptop since I'm at home, it is open and turned on all the time, and when I finish work, I prepare food."
"I start my laptop."
"I go on YouTube: D"
“I sit like this for a long time. =I'm home, I don't have to come home... it is hard..."
As we want to make sure that Metapackers stay mentally healthy, from the collected ideas, we have prepared a short guide. We hope that our employees will take advantage of the suggestions of their colleagues, and if you also cannot find your balance during the home office, keep on reading.
Hobbies in home mode
The first advice for maintaining balance between work and personal life during home office is, of course, to try to cut yourself off from your duties, especially right after you finish work.
“I completely cut myself off from work. You have to reset to not go crazy. "
"I take the plug from the power supply and hide it in a place where it will be invisible and safe."
"Light a cigar and take a deep breath after a hard day."
"I relax :>"
We support attempts to maintain good practices applied during the traditional work rhythm. Remember, no matter what your day looked like before the pandemic, maybe some old habits can be preserved or restored? No matter what type of habits they are 😉
"I go to bed and rest, just like I did when I came back from the office."
“I go to the other room to see my wife to talk about work. This way I try to keep a bit of old habits. "
We don’t know if it’s an old or new habit, but a few Metapackers go to sleep after shutting down their work computer. We don’t judge, on the contrary – we support it. Remember that a 20-minute nap during the day is great for relaxing, organizing information in your head, and giving you energy for further action. Do you need sleep? Go ahead and sleep.
But don’t forget about physical activity. Closed gyms and swimming pools can fortunately be replaced with trainings at home. Even if it’s a 15-minute stretch. In fact, when it comes to stretching, we strongly encourage you to step away from your computer every hour and do a few bends and twists. Not only in home office mode.
"I ventilate the room and do exercises for min. 15 minutes."
"I throw myself on the couch and stretch :D"
"I get up from my armchair and start walking around the house to rest my back."
"Physical activity, you need to stretch a little after sitting all day."
The last advice is to look for something to do that will help you clear your head. Metapackers look for it in everyday household chores, playing with children and being with their family members. Some keep cultivating their hobbies when circumstances permit.
"Home renovation."
"Playing with a child."
"Fun with kids."
"I take out my guitar and start to play a little."
"Conversation with the family. Home improvements. "
"I'm going to the garden to work."
Of course, not everyone can breathe while playing with their ofspring or go out to the garden and take care of plants. However, you can take care of your own home jungle and bring some greenery to your flat. Or arrange a videoconference with friends or family and gossip.
If, on the other hand, quarantine has prevented you from pursuing your hobby, maybe it’s time to find a new one? Try to read books of a genre that you haven’t read before. Have fun with origami. Learn the secrets of yoga or take up a plank challenge. The most important thing is to do something that will allow you to completely disconnect from work for at least one hour a day.
We really support you, and if you want to share your own recipes for effectively cutting off work from personal life, we invite you to discussion on our Facebook profile Meet Metapack.
