Coronavirus: How to Work from Home, the right way

The Coronavirus Is Forcing Indian Techies To Work From Home. Many don’t know when they can Go Back To The Office

Companies like Dell, Google, PayTm are encouraging workers to stay home. And many others will follow suit. So what do you as a techie do in such times?

As the coronavirus spreads in India and tech companies ask their workforces to do their jobs from home, these are unchartered territories for many techies. Some in the industry are looking at this as a test case for preparing for the final moment when working remotely will broadly replace working in person (and be widely accepted in the industry).

In such a situation it’s imperative that you have all that it takes to be prepared to stick it out at your home for an indefinite period of time, all the time ensuring that you are still delivering what is required of you

So here is How to Work From Home: A Checklist of the Essentials

Make sure you have all the tools you need: the right laptops, network access, passcodes and instructions for remote login

Minimize distractions and noises from others in your household.

On conference calls, mute your microphone when you aren’t speaking. When videoconferencing, be mindful of what the camera is picking up behind you

You need a fast and dedicated broadband connection

In the case of India, Power back up in the house becomes critical

Schedule group meetings by videoconference and set up group chats via programs like Slack or Microsoft Teams

Access to a printer is often needed, however not compulsory

For parents, talk with your manager about child-care challenges. If you’re asked to work from home and your children’s school or day-care shuts down, that might affect your ability to do remote work during normal business hours. In some cases, children may be old enough to fend for themselves. But younger children will need more attention

Fight the feeling of isolation. Maintaining a social connection is tricky while trying to create social distance to stave off the virus. Call people on the phone or video chat, and break up the day with some exercise.