Many of us who used to work in offices now work from home. It was strange at first, but we’ve adapted. Which is a good thing, because for many of us, working from home is the new normal. And while we’ve each been figuring out what works best for ourselves individually, we’ve also discovered new ways to work together.
We recently published “Reevaluating Your Work-from-Home Routine,” a blog post with professional advice on creating a healthy home workspace — and then we thought we’d toss the question to our Carbon Health teammates who work from home: What have you been doing to make working from home easier, more enjoyable, or better balanced with your personal life?
From the quirky to the practical, here are some of their responses. Enjoy!
“I stretch before sitting down at my desk, and I’ve since implemented ‘mindful minutes.’ I also make it a point to get outside for at least one break for some vitamin D — whether it's having lunch on the patio or simply walking my very loooooong driveway three times and then coming back in!” — Deven Tatum, Enterprise Territory Executive
“I make time for the gym at 6 a.m. every other day. It sets my mind right.” — Lindsey Whitehouse, Head of Public Relations and Communications
“I used to buy and customize a drink at Starbucks every morning, and now I make my own favorite espresso drink with the same ingredients! It’s saved me a ton of money — and let’s be honest, everything tastes much better when you get to re-create it with your style at home.” — Mercedes Hunter, Technical Program Manager
“I do a morning meditation for 15 to 20 minutes and don’t have any screen time from the moment I wake up until I actually start work.” — Rebecca Hartsfield, Senior Accounts Payable Specialist
“I do a small workout in the morning, change the kids’ Pampers, brush my teeth, and then sign in. I lay down during lunch or eat with the wife and answer all the kids’ questions in between.” — Paige Clayton, Network Engineer
“My husband and I both work from home so he’s my ‘co-worker’ at our home office. We play the Clubhouse podcast in the background and try our best to eat lunch together so there’s some face-to-face interaction during the day.” — Michelle Tang, Director of Marketing Operations
“I have added a lot more plants around the house. It makes the space seem more lively and provides cleaner air!” — Monique Fournier, Medical Billing Specialist
“I have NPR playing quietly in another room all day — it’s not loud enough for me to discern what’s being said, but the sound of muffled conversations keeps me company. It makes my home office (actually a small corner of my living room) feel less isolated and more like the open offices I’m accustomed to working in.” — Charles Purdy, Managing Editor
“I’m a camera ‘on’ guy. It makes me feel like I’m seeing my team in real life.” — Kerem Ozkay, Senior Vice President, Marketing
“Small habits that keep me sane include snuggling with my cats in between Zooming, keeping the physical ‘work’ and ‘life’ as separate as possible (I try not to eat at my work desk or in the bedroom), and wearing real clothes and pretending that I’m ‘meeting’ someone in person.” — Mitsue Karaman, Senior Marketing Manager
“I take two- to three-mile ‘meeting’ runs when my participation isn't necessary.” — Megan Yim, Clinical Quality Assurance Director
“I have definitely been known to chop vegetables and do food prep during one-on-ones. During meetings where I don't need my camera on, I am embroidering to keep my hands occupied. Also, SodaStream was a big game changer! No need to spend money on all that La Croix, and I could figure out all the extracts/flavorings I really love (squeeze of fresh lemon is my fave)!” — Hanah Yendler, Software Engineer
“I've started making sure that I walk around my block once every hour, which is what I think is equivalent to getting up to go to the printer or the coffee machine at my old job. I've also started scheduling phone dates once a week with friends to make up for some of the socialization I used to have in the office.” — Hilary Kanuch, Copywriter
“I take a post-workday hike on the Appalachian Trail.” — Dave Bemiller, Staff Engineer
“I now make like five cups of coffee per day at home instead of going out to buy it.” — Alex Cohen, Director of Product
