One of the many ways in which COVID 19 has turned our lives upside down is by forcing many of us to work from home. Ordinarily, I love telecommuting, but that’s when the kids are at daycare and I have the peace of mind to focus on my work and do two loads of laundry at the same time, lol.
This year, however, I was working from home with two toddlers hanging from my neck and my husband with his work meetings that were so loud I can hear them with the headphones on! In addition to that chaos, I changed departments and practice areas in late March to accept a promotion and more responsibilities in my role.
I recently received my performance evaluation from my supervisor and I was rated “excellent!” Looking back on how it started versus how it’s going, I believe that I both survived and thrived in my work during this period. In the beginning,
I didn’t have a plan for how I would balance everything. I was up all day bouncing between caring for the kids and doing work that didn’t require intense focus. Then after the kids were sleeping, I would work from one to four am so that I could have some quiet hours to focus on my more intense tasks like research and writing. This routine left me exhausted and with little energy to put into getting myself together before the work day started. I thought that would have little effect on my work because no one can see me anyway, right?
However, what I found is that my organization relied much more heavily on video conferencing calls and meetings to maintain face to face communication despite social distancing. My boss called me for our weekly meeting with his video on one day, and I felt so bad that I kept my video off because I looked a hot mess. I decided that day that I was going to make some adjustments so that I could rest well and get myself ready to be present for work even in this virtual setting. I chose work appropriate loungewear pieces that I could make more formal if needed, by adding a blazer and jewelry. I found that feeling like I was ready to turn that zoom camera on made me less inclined to shy away from interactions with coworkers and allowed me to be present to the maximum extent possible. I made sure to continue connecting with my coworkers by turning my camera on during staff meetings and by attending the weekly zoom “coffee breaks.” Last week, I pulled out a blazer unnecessarily in anticipation of a meeting with one of the leaders of my organization. Even though we were able to resolve everyone’s questions without the need for a video conference, there is something about being fully prepared to meet the demands of your job that gives you the confidence that you need to excel.
For this post, I am wearing the “Dubai Set” by Dzyne babe which is available in The Posh Up. While it isn’t necessary to wear a coordinate set as you can’t see your pants on video, it’s helpful for me to be ready for the whole day so that if I need to run outside for a quick errand I don’t waste additional time getting fully dressed. My blazer is old from TNL (similar here, or if you desire something a little different look here), my shoes are Rene Cavollia via Qbeescloset (follow her on Instagram for amazing deals on luxury European designers) and my earrings are by Raya Jewellry also available here.
Thanks so much for reading.
xoxo, Munje