Quarantine Work Does Not Equal Remote Work

Lately I have had a lot of people make statements to me such as

“This whole quarantine thing isn’t a lot different for you because you already worked from home”.

In fact, in Episode 3 of Remote with Rob & Dan I made a similar comment myself. While this comment certainly has some merit, it is not entirely true. Remote work is not simply just working from home and I think there is a common misconception that working from home means not wearing pants and taking constant breaks to watch Netflix. This very well might be the case for those times that you work from home as an escape from your everyday office job but once you have gone fully remote, a new world of distraction, scheduling and procrastination opens up.

In the 9 months since I have gone fully remote with my team, it has taken some getting used to and I had quite the strict routine set up for myself. Wake early, journal, exercise, breakfast, kids to school and then deep focus time chunked throughout the day. I followed a pretty strict schedule and this is paramount when working from home and attempting to get the most out of your days. It is easy to fall into the trap of household distractions, not to mention personal fulfillment distractions. Many times I have sat down to work only to get distracted by the clutter in my office or the dishes in the sink. Other times, I see the guitar sitting next to me or the book on my desk and just have to dive into some personal fulfillment. A tight schedule of not only what I want to accomplish throughout the day but also how and when I plan to accomplish those things is absolutely necessary.

Enter the quarantine that we are all inevitably part of. While I have been working from home for the better of 9 months now, I have not been in quarantine all those months. I have not had my kids needing homeschooling, vying for my attention throughout the day. I have not had the guilt of keeping them entertained and happy. On top of all this, I have not had the lingering seclusion factor that is slowly starting to tax my mental state.

Quarantine work does not equal remote work. This is a new normal for all of us and while some people might have been more prepared, it is not the same for anyone. I believe what has kept me sane during this time are the tools that I have acquired over the last six months, related to mindfulness and productivity. I must maintain or stick to a solid morning routine to give my day some semblance of normalcy. The morning routine that I have established has most definitely kept my sanity and I suggest everyone start their day in the most positive and mindful way possible.

Not only do I keep my routines in tact, I create new routines to better suit my family’s needs but I must admit, the seclusion is wearing on us as it is everyone. We need to remind ourselves that there are those that have it much more difficult than strictly being relegated to the house. We also must use the time to create or learn something new.

I believe this work from home time will open up the mental gates for many and those that use their time efficiently and create solid routines around remote work will come out the other side of this with a new set of tools and mental models that will preclude them from ever wanting to work in an office again.

So while being forced to work and live in seclusion is not the same as having a remote work job, you can still use this time to discipline yourself and create patterns and routines that you can apply to a later time in your life and you will be better for it.

Go create something.