I recently shared tips with A little Pink Book about working from home, which you can read here.

Since then, the period of working from home culture has almost become the norm.

With that in mind, here are some *more* tips for your consideration.

*If you’re in a location where you can meet face to face, but don’t feel comfortable to do so, don’t be afraid to say so. You may want to say that at this point in time you’re still working from home and that you’d be happy to facilitate a meeting over zoom or over the phone.

*Don’t stress too much about your background in Zoom meetings, remember we’re all human! We all have piles of laundry and unopened mail lying around, it’s just that some of us are better at shoving it away (read: organising it!). If you want to choose a virtual background there are some options here to avoid any of the embarrassment.

*Invest in good headphones /microphone. Most computers have decent microphones, but if you’re wanting privacy then headphones with a microphone are the best way to go.

*Set up an auto-responder. You’ll want to talk to your employer about this, however if you’ve set up a flexible work agreement and within that flexible work hours, then you should let people know *what* those hours are, so they know when to expect to hear from you (if it’s outside of normal business hours).

*Make time to catch up with others. Just because you’re out of the office, doesn’t mean you should miss out on that vital interaction. It’s critical for your mental health. So why not organise a virtual get together or perhaps as the weather warms up an outdoor gathering? Even better, you may want to work from a Cowork space, such as The Foundry Cowork at Erina on the NSW Central Coast, it allows you to have the flexibility to work remotely, in a collaborative workspace.

Finally, if you are transitioning back to the office and you’re feeling anxious, make sure you let your Human Resources department know. An understanding employer will be sympathetic to your needs and will help with the transition.