What to do When Stuck Working from Home

We are all very aware of the current viral outbreak that is sweeping the world. The US now leads the planet in confirmed cases. As such, governments are imposing increasingly strict restrictions on travel and even local movement in general. Many businesses have been temporarily closed, grocery stores operate on reduced hours, and anywhere people can congregate has been closed down. The only major exceptions are some local parks. This is a blessing because it’s just not humane to coop people up in a house for who knows how long. We need some fresh air.

Given our current reality (which feels more like a Hollywood movie), millions of people are stuck working from home. Nonessential research at many of the world’s best institutions has effectively been ceased. Since I work in a lab, this means I can no longer do experiments. I’ve had to find other ways to make progress in my research. In addition to that, I’ve also taken this opportunity to pick up some old hobbies and even start some new ones; things I simply don’t have time for when life is moving full speed ahead. In this article, I’m going to talk about how we can stay productive and sane when stuck working from home.

Determine a Course of Action

If your Ph.D. relies on wet lab-based experimental work, you may not be able to do that right now. So what do you do instead? The first thing that you should do write a page or two summarizing your research progress as it stands. This will allow you to return to your work with a solid reminder of what it is you were doing before you left.

The next step is to speak with your advisor. It’s important to do this regularly! By having regular meetings with your advisor, you are held more accountable to make progress each week. Sit down and think about the project you are working on. Write a list of questions you want to answer and topics you want to look up. This is an opportunity to become intimately familiar with the literature related to your project. Your advisor will very likely encourage you to dive into the literature and ask you to keep a record of what you find. They may ask you to research and report on specific topics. I’m making slides to document the literature I read. I’m also charting out a course of experiments to materialize and characterize our ideas in a complete story.

This time is also a superb opportunity to branch out a little. You may find some new interesting tools and techniques you can use in your research. There is so much knowledge in the literature waiting to be read.

Stick to a Schedule

Many of us are probably very regimented. We have our routines down to the minute and do not like those routines to be disrupted. Sadly, everyone’s routine is being disrupted. Humans are supremely adaptable, yet we are also fallibly impressionable. Hence, it is of the utmost importance to follow your normal schedule as efficiently as possible. By following a schedule, we maintain some of the normalcy in our lives. It also gives structure to our days and lets us see what is coming down the pipe.

It’s very challenging to work as much as we normally may right now. Sticking to a schedule, even a reduced one, enables us to still be productive with our time and still enjoy some leisure, too. Also, it makes for less of an adjustment to get back into our former routines when things return to normal.

Learn a New Skill

Many of us probably have a lot more downtime than we normally do. This is to be expected. It’s quite challenging to work with the same vigor at home as you do when you’re alone in your element. As a productive break from your work, try to learn a new skill that will benefit you in some way. This will, of course, still require some time and dedication.

Learning to program is a first-tier candidate. There is a litany of free and inexpensive educational programs out there to learn to code. Just to name a few, there are Dataquest, Codecademy, and EdX courses. I personally use Dataquest and am quite happy with their platform. EdX also offers free courses from universities and companies in practically any academic subject of interest. Learning a new software that will assist you in your research or hobby is also a good use of your time.

Pick Up a Hobby

I think that when we’re ultra-busy with school and work, we forget that there are other things in life that are just as deserving of our time. These include spending time with family, learning about something that isn’t school or work-related, and picking up a hobby. Hobbies are great. They’re things that you spend time doing purely because you enjoy doing them. They may even be therapeutic. Unfortunately, hobbies can be money pits, but this doesn’t have to be the case.

Given the current global situation, it makes sense to get into hobbies that you can do in the comfort of your own home or in the great outdoors a safe distance from others. It also makes sense that the items you need be purchasable online. Here are a few simple suggestions:

Indoor hobbies:

• Anything artistic (drawing, painting, music, making videos, editing, graphic design, etc.).
• Build a website for blogging or whatever you want
• Start a business: an online store and virtual tutoring are good options
• Cooking (groceries are deliverable nowadays)
• Reading
• Yoga and other exercises
• Build model kits

Outdoor hobbies:

• Fishing
• Hiking
• Gardening (you can order seeds and live plants online)
• Photography
• Jogging, yoga, and other exercises

Read More

This isn’t the first time we discuss the importance of reading more, and it certainly won’t be the last. With the increase in downtime, many will turn to Netflix and video games to assist in passing the time. That’s fine, but if you have been looking for some extra time to pick up a book again, you probably won’t have a better opportunity than right now. While we’re on the subject, I recently wrote an article on the importance of reading more. It talks about the different sources of reading material and the benefits of each.

Dealing with Distractions

While there are many benefits of working from home – having meetings in your PJs, taking walks outside, cuddling with your dog, having time for hobbies, etc. – these benefits can also be the biggest distractions. Honestly, it’s just harder to stay focused for 10-12 hours a day when there are other people, pets, and enticing activities around. We’re not in our normal work environment, so our minds are often not in the correct state for banging out hours of quality work.

I think the easiest ways to avoid distractions when working from home are the following:

1. Set up a quiet workspace just for you. It should have ample space for your items. Others should not be walking by and interrupting you constantly. A desk in your room will do nicely. Noise-canceling headphones are a good investment if you need a little extra peace and quiet to focus.
2. Knock out the majority of your work when others are not likely to be up and about. This typically corresponds to early in the morning or late at night. If people are working during the day and the house is quiet, that’s the perfect opportunity.
3. Allow hobbies, TV, games, exercise, etc. serve as a reward system for accomplishing your tasks for the day. That way you can still do all of the things you want to do and not feel guilty for not getting your work done.
4. Take breaks! Some people like to go hard all day and then be done. Others like to split up the day into sessions with breaks in between. This is my preferred strategy. By taking breaks, you allow yourself to indulge in some of the distractions and enjoy the day, especially if it is nice outside. The important thing is to not let those breaks become too lengthy or too frequent.
5. Tell your family that you have work to do and ask that they not make a lot of noise for a while until you’re finished. Hopefully, they’ll understand. If they’re all doing work too, it’s less likely you’ll feel left out.

Conclusion

We’re experiencing these unprecedented times as they happen. Global restrictions are in place, and the economy is taking a complete nosedive unlike anything ever seen before. Consequentially, many businesses have shut down. Even research labs at the world’s best universities are no longer in operation (temporarily). Everyone is working from home – or not working at all due to layoffs.

Working from home brings many benefits. We have additional time for reading, hobbies, connecting with nature and family, introspectively reflecting, and of course, working. I’m still getting my work done, but I’m also using the time to take a step back and smell the roses. We should all be doing our part to slow the spread and stay as productive as we can, but take advantage of this time to destress a little and find other areas of fulfillment. We all need it.