You’ve made the decision to have your staff work from home. Now comes the hard part.

 

How do you keep this newly formed remote workforce happy, productive and connected?

 

How do you help employees avoid feeling isolated, lonely and separated? We humans are social creatures and need face to face contact. Some people do great working from home and thrive with the peace and quiet, while others feel distracted, making it hard for them to stay focused and be productive.

With all the changes and panic happening with this coronavirus outbreak, there’s a lot of fear that’s coming up for employees. Are their jobs safe? Are they financially secure? Are they physically safe? Will the disease make it to their immediate community or into their home? Are they emotionally secure? Are these fears affecting the way they think and perform? There are so many questions to consider when thinking about the overall well-being of your staff. People are scared and uncertain. What’s the best way to handle this?

 

Focus on their physical, mental & emotional well-being

 

The top priority of course is the physical health of employees. Making the decision to have people work from home is one strategy that many companies are implementing. Do employees have access to all the food, toiletries and essentials they need? Grocery stores are out of toilet paper. Is there a way to help your employees deal with this? Are there ways to help them naturally boost their immune systems to be as healthy and strong as possible at this critical juncture? One good idea is to send out information about best practices for hand washing and sanitation, along with suggestions for natural antiviral remedies they can use to boost their immune systems, reduce their viral load and avoid infections. There are a number of herbs, homeopathic remedies, and pure essential oils with strong antiviral properties that can support the body, such as Elderberry syrup, doTERRA OnGuard essential oil, and Lemon Balm to name a few. Register for our upcoming health panel webinar on Wed, March 18th at 8pm PT as acupuncturists, nutritionists and essential oil experts discuss strategies to boost your immunity and stay healthy.

Once you know your people are physically safe, you’ll be smart to address their mental and emotional safety. Being crippled by fear is a surefire way to reduce focus and productivity. Share self-care practices and strategies to help them move past their anxiety and let go of stress to maintain a productive mindset. Help them identify the opportunities that exist within the challenges so they can be more resilient and successful. Balance by Nature is taking our wellness programs online to help guide people through this crisis with greater mental clarity and ease.

 

Help them stay connected and focused while working from home

 

Also consider how to maintain your culture and keep remote workers connected to one another while working from home so that they don’t feel isolated. Conduct Zoom meetings with the video on, so people can see one another. Have employees pair up into buddy/accountability groups so they can check in with one another. Encourage employees to have virtual coffees with each other on video where they discuss thought provoking questions to get to know one another better and build stronger relationships. And remind them to take some movement breaks in their day.

Time blocking is always a great strategy for staying on task. At the beginning of each day, have your staff members write down the 3 most important things they want to accomplish that day personally and professionally. This provides them with the ability to stay focused on a small number of goals per day so that they can cross them off their lists and feel accomplished at the end of the day. Find ways to ensure that expectations are being managed and people feel appreciated for the work they do. Gratitude goes a long way in a crisis. And remember to breathe. We’ll get through this together.