A year ago, when several companies started adapting to remote work due to Covid-19, many thought it was a passing moment, and that soon everything would be back to normal.
Today, what we see is that the “new normal” is here to stay. Many employees remain in a remote work regime – the worsening of the pandemic, with new strains of the virus circulating throughout the country and the record number of deaths has brought us to a second wave even worse than the first one experienced in 2020.
Mental health and home office
Faced with this scenario, maintaining productivity at home has been a challenge – anxiety and depression, great villains of isolation in times of pandemic are more present than ever in the lives of workers, who face the uncertainties of an economy that still struggles with the effects of the crisis.
Along with the few social interactions and the accumulation of functions, when we work from home, keeping the workplace clean and organized is something that often happens during working hours.
With so many demands, it is difficult to get our mental health up to date. But while mass vaccination does not happen in some countries and the numbers of people infected with the Coronavirus are still alarming, with some changes in attitude on a daily basis, it is possible to improve the situation and maintain balance and lightness in these adverse times.
A study by the National Institute of Health (US) revealed that 48% of productivity is lost due to mental disorders, such as anxiety, stress, burnout and depression. Therefore, it is important to adopt practices that encourage mental health care.
Finding a balance between personal and professional life, with healthy habits and routines, can make this moment that we are going through lighter.
Tips to increase productivity at home
The busy daily life of those who need to negotiate all the time, in search of good prices and effective purchasing conditions can be very stressful – even more so while working from home – so we have separated some fundamental tips:
1. Create a routine – and stick to it
Having defined schedules is very important to not lose focus, deadlines or have a drop in income. Understand that it is necessary to create a routine: put the tasks that you will need to accomplish during the week on paper or in a spreadsheet.
It is easier to visualize the activities and prioritize what has to be delivered first and what can be left for another day – thus avoiding procrastination and optimizing your time. That way, you avoid overworking and do only what you need to do, avoiding unnecessary stress.
2. Set limits and stipulate moments of rest and leisure
It is not because you are working at home that you should not have a specific time for rest and leisure.
Disconnect from work when the hours are up and do something that gives you pleasure: take a relaxing bath, listen to music, play a musical instrument, read a book, exercise, play with your children and pets, watch a movie or series … The list is huge!
Doing something good for you improves your mood. When you relax, anxiety and stress decrease – which brings much more quality of life and well-being.
3. Use technology to get closer to people
Since it is not possible to meet family and friends in person safely, how about using technology to keep in touch and be distracted?
Tools used at work to hold online meetings, for example, can also be useful for keeping in touch with loved ones – which alleviates isolation.
Talking about your feelings, telling how your day was, sharing an anguish or a joy is essential to control anxiety.
4. Optimize purchasing negotiations to optimize time
The concept of Triune Brain can be used to improve the results of negotiations in the purchasing sector.
Well studied and applied, it can become a form of self-knowledge and be used to better “map” the people with whom we relate – in personal and professional life – including when negotiating.
In this article, you will find the way to use it. By improving your negotiations, you are able to accomplish tasks with more assertiveness and less stress.
5. Practice emotional intelligence
Recognize your own emotions and how they influence your performance: teams with a high Emotional Quotient index build a solid foundation of trust, effectiveness and cooperation, which reflects in overall productivity.
We can say that Emotional Intelligence is able to help in the evolution of any career, since emotionally intelligent professionals are able to have self-control and maintain their motivation, enhancing their performance.
6. Always seek improvement
With the right tools and continuous learning, it is possible to make increasingly strategic decisions. This includes being flexible and being willing to innovate – revisiting processes, having new partners, etc.
In this scenario, proactivity and the ability to adapt to different situations are some of the skills that most stand out in remote work.
On the Soluparts blog, we have some articles to help you develop the skills most needed for today’s job market:
7. Have a partner company
A partnership with a qualified company with experience in international purchases offers advantages such as agility in the search for parts.
In the specific case of Soluparts, it is enough to send a single document containing a list of products of interest, and the complete search of prices and terms with suppliers from all over the world is done, so that the best offers on the market reach our customers.
All the buyer needs to do is send a purchase order when the characteristics of the offer meet it. The result is less stress and more productivity.
Conclusion
Although there are difficulties due to the pandemic period, seeking well-being and encouraging mental health, it is possible to map positive points: many professionals and companies are discovering a new work format.
This fact shows how reinventing is possible and also how resilience is present in all sectors.
When we rethink our routines, planning and strategy also change, which opens the way for innovation and new habits – making it possible for us to expand knowledge and realize a much greater potential than previously imagined.
In this way, it is possible to have a more productive day to day and with less stress and anxiety even working from home. Count on Soluparts to make your routine easier!
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