After the emergence of the pandemic last year, the majority of people started working from home. Now that the world has started adapting various precautions and safety measures, people are encouraged to start getting back to the grind. It has been almost one year now - earlier people were not used to working from home and now people are not used to working from the office! So many people have been adversely affected by this pandemic - both mentally as well as physically. Some people have suffered from irreparable losses while others have lived in constant fear since the beginning. Now that people are getting back on track, many offices have reopened or many employers have declared a date on which they’d start calling their employees back to the office. Of course, things will not reopen at the pace which they earlier used to be, but most organizations have prepared themselves to at least start taking baby steps. From opening their office for one day a week for only a certain number of employees to bringing some flexibility in the timings - organizations are also adapting and accepting some new elements of the ‘new normal’. In fact, many organizations are even contemplating - is hybrid working the new normal? This whole situation can be really chaotic and confusing so let us discuss a few ways to start working from your office in a smooth and seamless manner.
1. Take it slow - You cannot start working from your office at the same speed and with the same zest with which you left work before the pandemic. Thus, our advice to you is that you must take it slow otherwise you might feel too overwhelmed by this ‘new’ change again. Keep regular meetings with your manager and team members so you all can share your feelings and opinions. This will make you realize that you are not alone and it is okay to take things a little slow. The idea of most organizations is to get you started - not to force you into speeding up. Thus, it is important to take a break every once in a while. You can call your family members or friends or play money games or other interesting sports online in between work so you do not feel so overwhelmed.
2. Take care of your hygiene and maintain all the safety measures - Do not forget that the pandemic has not left the world and the risk is still very much there. So, clean and wash your hands at regular intervals. Keep sanitizing yourself, do not touch any surface without cleaning it, do not indulge in handshakes with employees, and maintain social distancing while interacting with others. This is for your own safety as well as the safety of others.
3. Ask for sick leave or work from home if you feel unwell - If you feel a little under the weather while working from your office, immediately go back home. You can take the permission of your manager to allow you to work from the office if you still can or you can apply for sick leave. Take ample rest at home, drink lots of fluids, keep checking your temperature every once in a while, and return to work only when you feel completely okay. This is for everyone’s good. Moreover, even after taking a sick leave or going back home and working from there, do visit or consult a doctor soon so you can have a timely checkup and there is no delay in your treatment.
4. Communicate but from a distance - No office is complete without regular meetings and when you have resumed working from your office, you are expected to meet in person, sit together, and collectively, accomplish all the goals of the meeting. However, while being a part of the meeting is very crucial, you must not forget that the pandemic is still very much here. It is very important to maintain social distancing with others while communicating and interacting with them. In addition to this, you must keep reminding yourself that times are different now -
things are not the same anymore! It is better if you do not share food with each other, get your own lunch, water bottle, pens, notepads, etc., and sit separately even when you are taking a break for a few minutes from work. If you want to pass your time or do something to distract yourself from work stress every once in a while, you can indulge in online chatting, online poker, or some other online game, or even online video conferencing. In this digital era, make the most of what you’ve got!
5. Empathize with others - Know that everyone is sailing in the same ship - everyone is dealing with the pandemic. Even though the effects are different for every individual, the generic impact is the same. The bottom line is that the pandemic has changed everyone’s lives. Thus, it is vital to empathize with others and listen to their problems. This is good for your own and your employees’ mental health.
Final thoughts
Now that it has almost been a year since the pandemic had emerged, people have started resuming their lives like earlier times, knowing that they cannot pause forever. This also includes work life. Thus, people have started working from the office again, offices have reopened, and virtual workplaces are slowly fading again, of course, with some new changes! This article is all about how to deal with going back to ‘normal’ again!
