Working From Home: How To Prep Your Home For Coronavirus

expat network

Working From Home: How To Prep Your Home For Coronavirus

It’s challenging to keep you and your family healthy in the home during the coronavirus pandemic, particularly if you still have to commute to work every day. That is why you should count it as a privilege if your bosses allow you to work from home.

Working from home minimizes your chances of getting into direct contact with respiratory droplets of infected people, or touching surfaces that have been contaminated with the contagious virus. However, that doesn’t mean you or one of your home mates cannot bring the virus home from your outdoor errands. To ensure that everyone is safe, you need to prep your home for remote working during coronavirus in the following 5 ways.

1. Invest in home addition

If you have limited space in your home, you might need to consider home additions just in case one of your home mates gets infected. Infections in the home might, for example, necessitate an extra bathroom and a quarantine room. Home additions also apply when you need extra space for your home office. The good thing is that optimizing your floor space is a smart investment because, even after the pandemic, you will still have more livable square footage, which will mean increased comfort and functionality. Besides, renovations often increase a home’s resale value.

Note: If you are a tenant, moving to a bigger home would be your best bet.

2. Create an at-home workspace

Let’s assume that you created a home office as part of your home additions in #1 above. But the new room is not a workspace yet until you make it conducive for remote working. Start by making the room out of bounds for all roommates, pets and kids included. Ensure that the fridge, TV, and bed, among other items that could lure you out of your work mode, are out of sight. Invest in the right furniture (at least an office desk and an ergonomic work chair) to make the workspace comfortable. Noise-proof the workspace and if that is not possible at the moment, invest in noise-canceling headphones. Bring in a houseplant and motivational wall art. Create a background that won’t embarrass you during videoconferences. Anything that will keep your productivity juices flowing belongs to the office, and anything that could distract you should stay out.

Note:

Be careful not to mess up your work-life balance. Stick to a rigid work routine just like you would in a traditional office and “go home” after work. Going home, in this case, means not carrying any work from the office desk, taking a quick shower as you do on a normal workday, watching movies on weekends, having indoor date nights, reading a book after work, and going for evening walks. You know, the normal after-work stuff!

3. Cleaning around the home

Thorough cleaning is an important precaution that can significantly lower the risk of at-home coronavirus transmissions. It is, therefore, important to clean and disinfect high-touch surfaces in your home office e.g. the desk, chair, door handle, keyboard, and computer as regularly as possible. Other high-touch surfaces include kitchen and bathroom surfaces, remote controls, light switches, toys, doors, and all furniture in the home. Remember to wear gloves while at it and to follow all cleaning instructions as issued by the WHO. If you are unsure of the right products to use against the virus, refer to recommendations from local authorities.

4. Stock on food and meds but do not stockpile

You need a consistent supply of food, prescription medicine, and cleaning supplies when working from home, but there is absolutely no need to panic buy or stockpile. Just stock up on what you need for about a month and leave the rest for other people in need.

5. Bring the gym indoors

Since gyms have closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is time you invested in home workout equipment. If you don’t have the budget for that, try simple exercises such as push-ups, climbing stairs, and running around your compound.

Working out regularly is therapeutic; it gets your mind off work deadlines and challenging life expectations. At-home workouts can also be effective in keeping type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and obesity away.

Conclusion

In whatever you do, do not panic. This pandemic will be over soon for as long as you play your part in flattening the curve. Lastly, avoid scare-mongering platforms for the sake of your mental health and eat healthy foods for the sake of your physical health.

Moving Abroad Checklist

Initial Considerations

Will your partner be travelling with you?

If so, what will they be giving up in your present home and will they be able to continue with their career in your new home? You will need to check whether a separate visa is required for your partner to work or if your visa gives that right. If they are unable to work you will need to decide on the effect on your finances and what alternatives are available to give a fulfilling life (home business, training, voluntary work).

Are you taking family with you?

Moving with family raises many exciting opportunities, but also can create challenges. The HSBC Expat Explorer survey indicates that expat kids can take six months to settle in to their new country (see article). Getting young or even older children to prepare to move and leave their friends and family behind can be a challenge and should be thought through.

The options for education is another area that needs to be thought through.

Moving your child to a new country with a different education system can be a great opportunity to broaden their experience, but if they are close to key exams the timing can make this inadvisable. If you do take your family with you, it is important to decide between joining the local school system or choosing an international school.

Where will you be living?

Whether you will be living in a house or apartment, furnished or unfurnished, these decisions will affect what you need to take with you. The time you are planning to live overseas will also affect whether you should leave your property at home empty, rent it out or sell it. See the article Sell, Store or Ship.