Many architecture, engineering, and construction firms are rapidly preparing to send their employees home to work. Because of the Coronavirus, many of them have already banned all company travel and are making plans to have most of their staff work at home.

Some A/E/C firms already have a big portion of their teams working from home on occasion so that won’t be a huge change for those specific employees. But what if you work full-time in an office? What if you are used to working in teams that physically sit next to you? How will the transition from working in the office every day to working at home full-time, for at least a few weeks, look like for you?

I have worked remotely for more than two years now for a company that is 100% virtual. We have no offices anywhere. Before that, I worked in an office with my team either just outside my door or in another company office.

Through this experience of transitioning from an in-office to a remote worker, I wanted to share some advice on what to expect and how to prepare to work remotely.

There will be actual physical preparation that will need to happen like computers, workspace, internet, etc. These are the items that most folks, especially at our firms focus on first. But there are some psychological aspects as well.

You can either read about them or watch the lesson from a Facebook Live inside the Marketers Take Flight Co-Working Community.

Designate a Physical Workspace

I strongly encourage you to set up a dedicated workspace for your remote work. You have a desk at the office, and I feel that you should have a desk at home. If you’re lucky to already have a desk that houses a personal computer, then I would clear that off to make room for you to do your work there. However, if you don’t already have a desk area in your house, make a dedicated space out of the kitchen table or move a folding table into an extra room.

It is very important to have a place that is designated for work. This way, you physically “go to work” and then “leave work” when you are not at that space. For me, this has triggered the mindset that if I am in my designated workspace, I am working. When I am in the kitchen eating breakfast or lunch, that’s okay, but I am on a break just like if I went to the breakroom in the office.

Use Headphones, Even When Home Alone

You might already have a good set of headphones if your office has an open concept. Make sure to bring those home with you. You might not think you’ll need them because you’re at home alone. I am here to tell you that you will need them, even if you’re the only person in the house.

There are a lot of daytime noises in our neighborhood. And, I didn’t realize how loud they were until I started working from home. I live in Florida, so yard work including lawnmowers are buzzing every day. Also, after the last few years of storms, I am still hearing chain saws and the hammering of new roofs being installed. It’s amazing how loud a neighborhood can be!

You will especially need your headphones if you have pets and kids at home. The headphones will help block out all the noises coming from inside and outside your house. Most likely, you’ll be on more phone calls and web meetings, so make sure you dial or log in using your headphones.

Set Expectations for Meetings with Video

Let’s be real for a moment. Now that you are working from home, will you really get dressed in your business attire, do your hair and makeup every day? Probably not. In fact, that’s one of the biggest benefits of working from home.

So, now that most of your company is working remotely, you will have more meetings via conference calls or web meetings through services like Zoom or GoToMeeting. These web meetings have the capabilities for everyone to go on camera so you can everyone’s faces during the meeting.

This isn’t a bad thing. It does help people stay focused during the meeting. You probably already do this if you have video conferencing set up in your office conference rooms. However, the difference now is everyone is at home, not in your firm’s conference room.

Give everyone the courtesy of letting them know if you expect the meeting to have video and show themselves to the meeting attendees. This notice should be enough time for someone to get dressed if need be. For example, don’t tell them 5 minutes before the call is supposed to begin.

Make Sure Your WiFi is Ready

With more people working from home, I can already tell my home internet is being drained. I have home internet provided by my cable provider and pay for the fastest speed they offer. There have already been service interruptions and I suspect it to get worse as more employees are working from home.

When you attend meetings using services like Zoom or GoToMeeting, you are basically streaming the meeting, like you would with Netflix or Hulu. This takes a toll on your overall bandwidth in your house. If you combine that with kids at home streaming or your spouse also working from home, be prepared for some frustration.

Also, check with your internet provider about data limits and data metering. You may have to increase the data usage for this month because now you are at home using the data. I didn’t have to worry about this until we canceled cable. When we “unbundled” our services, my cable provider now meters are data. Unfortunately, we don’t have any other internet providers in my area, but that’s an entirely different topic 😊

Working at Home with Kids

Chances are you have transitioned to a remote worker temporarily due to either your firm mandating it or your kids’ schools have been closed so you need to be home with them.

I am going to make a bold statement here.

It’s nearly impossible to get work done with the kids at home with you.

My kids are 15 and 10 and are pretty self-sufficient, but they interrupt me nearly have 15 minutes. I couldn’t imagine trying to get work down with younger kids by my side.

I do know some parents who manage this, but honestly don’t know how.

Here’s my advice to those of you who must navigate working at home with your kids.

• First, if you can, get a babysitter or have them go over to a relative or friend’s house during your core work hours. This is the ideal situation and might not be possible for everyone.
• Move your workspace into a separate room and physically close the door when you are working. Check on the kids when you are in between tasks. I would only recommend this if your kids are old enough to be in another room on their own. Obviously, you can’t do this with a baby or toddler.
• If you can’t do any of those options, change your work hours. Get up earlier to work before they wake up, work during their nap time, or work later into the evening after they have gone to bed. Of course, you will need to communicate this to your team, so they know when you are “on the clock” or available for meetings. If you need to collaborate with others, this still might be challenging.
• Another option is to switch times when you are caring for the kids and working with your spouse or friend.

Use This Time to Get Results

The remote working situation will be temporary for most firms. However, if you find that you like working remotely, use this as a test to make it permanent.

My prediction to this situation that we are in is that, I feel that many employers who traditionally think that if someone isn’t in the office, they aren’t working is going to change their minds. Both employers and employees are going to be forced to work in a different way and come out the other end with a new understanding of how the work can get done.

One of the biggest benefits of working remotely is not having as many distractions. I find that I get my work completed in a fraction of the time. I also can completely shut email, chats, etc. and focus on the task at hand. And, there is no one just popping by my desk to ask if I got their email and what I thought about it.

This results in better work products in less time. At least that has been my experience.

If remote working is something that you have wanted and during this time you grow to enjoy this work experience, step up and do you best work. This will help make the case to make remote working a regular occurrence, if not permanent in your position.

Any other advice for new remote workers?

If you have transitioned from an office to working at home, is there any other advice you would give to a new remote worker? If so, share in the comments below.

No doubt that the next few weeks will be hectic and uncertain. I am not an expert on the virus nor want to advise companies and people on what they should do now. However, I am a believer that we should plan and try to keep going as best we can, but with caution. That’s why I wanted to share this advice on making a smoother transition to working from home.