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WFH Perils and Predicaments – Part 2

May 5, 2020 | Business, Productivity, Remote Work

In our first blog, Gina talked about jointly working from home and how we have managed to be effective. I am going to address how we live (and work) in close quarters and the structures we use to support our sanity and our relationship.

Most of what we have learned about having life sing while working at home in close quarters has come as a result of doing it wrong. For instance, one of the things we discovered fairly quickly is that our working hours had no boundaries. We found that one of us was doing or planning on doing work things during a time that the other was expecting to be social or have down time. As a result, we agreed to “working hours” and “non-working hours” so that we knew what to expect from each other.

We also agreed to find ways to interact with each other during our work time. As Gina noted in our initial blog, we had to find a way to interrupt each other appropriately. So, we ask permission. And from time to time in the middle of an interruption we have to say “enough” in a way that doesn’t diminish the other’s sharing. This is a work in process. We are discovering how to be good at this.

Our partnership also extends to mindset. It is very easy to go to a dark place during these times. It takes something intentional to not let the impact of what is happening leave us upset or even angry. We have a text thread with another couple, close friends of ours, where we create every day what we say this day is for. We want our days to be spent inside of our design rather than living them as victims of these trying circumstances.

So, we recommend:

  • Agreed upon working and no-working hours
  • Ways to interact with each other during working hours
  • Determining what you are up to with each day so that you have the days be yours

Let us know what you think about these recommendations and what you are dealing with. We are rooting for you. Stay safe, be well and know that you are not alone.

John Barron, Apollo Coaching & Consulting

Co-viral Living: Sharing Your At-Home Workspace

Apr 21, 2020 | About Athena, Productivity, Remote Work

Are there now two of you working from home in some amount of shared space? Have you started working through the issues that have popped up?

Is this a cool new future emerging for you two, or a case for one of you moving to a tent in the backyard?

We’ve been there!

Apollo Coaching & Consulting and Athena Executive Services, Inc decided to jointly author a few blogs on this topic. WHY? The owners of each of them are us, John Barron and Gina Cotner. I’m Gina, the founder and CEO of Athena and I’m going to create and share this first blog with you.

We are two business owners who have worked from home for years running their firms, under one roof. And this little Mt. Olympus is not a big house. We live in a two-bedroom condo. When we moved in, we converted the dining room to one office and the second bedroom to the other office.

We can honestly say, we’ve been working together in close quarters for years and it has worked really well! For the most part, we have loved it.

John is a business coach walking around the condo talking to clients throughout the day. Easily 10,000 steps per day for him. I don’t know how he does it. But he’s a thinker who likes to walk and think, and walk and coach, and periodically stops back by his standing desk or his white board to capture a few notes and keeps walking.

I usually only have one or two calls or video conferences each day. We’ve never coordinated our schedules to make sure that we don’t both schedule calls at the same time. Sometimes his voice just fades into the background for me, sometimes, I say to myself, “Get your voice out of my head already!” When those moments come or when I need to be alone in quiet, I go into our bedroom. Under the window we installed a small pop-up platform that I can raise up and work from for a few hours if I want to. While many would say to NEVER work in the bedroom, it really works for me and the view is terrific. Then when I’m done working, I make sure to move any “office” items back to my office space (laptop, phone, coffee) so that there’s no signs of “work” in the bedroom.

 

Pro Tips:

  • We have very little paper. We just need our laptop when we’re working or speaking with someone. We do have files, but rarely need to get into them.
  • We keep our environment (the whole condo) neat. When you don’t have a lot of space, a little mess can soon make 50% of your space annoying. We do our best to get everything back where it belongs when we’re done using it or dealing with it (slippers, scissors, the mail, my yoga mat)
  • We have a clear division of labor in our home. We’re clear who deals with trash, laundry, plant watering, bed making, cooking, dishes, morning coffee, etc. So, we’re never waiting around for the other one to “handle that”.
  • This one took us a while to learn – We ask each other if it’s ok to talk to them before we start talking to them. We are still practicing this. If John starts talking to me out of the blue and doesn’t know I’m deep in thought writing a blog, he doesn’t know I’m not listening, and I’m not interested in being interrupted. Truth is I’m worse than him about this! So, we say something to each other like, “Hey, can I share something with you now?” or “Can you tell me when you’re interruptible next?”

 

What are you discovering as new practices in working from home? What’s working? What’s not working as well as you had hoped?

 

 

Managing people remotely

Mar 24, 2020 | Business, Delegation, Productivity, Remote Work

Athena has always been a work-from-home company. 100% virtual, from Day 1.
 
 
But what does it take to manage your staff from home? There’s a lot that has come out in the last week or two on tips for working from home. But how do you manage your team, while sitting at your dining room table?
 
 
Our tips:
 
  • Have regularly scheduled check-ins.
  • Use video. Face to face check-ins are best.
  • Have an agenda for the call, even if it’s just to say, “On each of our calls, we’re going to cover X and then Y.”
  • Be prepared for your “check in” time with them. What will you be discussing? Treat it like a meeting. Take notes. (Depending on the culture of your company, you may want to construct a more formal or more casual check-in meeting. Doing the dishes while talking with your staff likely doesn’t set the precedent you want.)
  • While “checking in” on projects and work, don’t forget to check in on the human being. People are impacted by the times we find ourselves living in. Allowing them to simply be in communication makes a difference in their mental well being, and thus their productivity.
 
Given the unusual times we find ourselves in, if managing people remotely is new or uncomfortable for you, and you would like to get some input from our CEO on your particular situation, she is happy to speak with you.
 
 
Learn more and schedule time with Athena CEO, Gina Cotner:  athena.ginacotner@gmail.com

 

 

Work From Home Tips

Mar 10, 2020 | Business, Productivity, Remote Work

Are you new to telecommuting?

Our contractors love the flexibility of working remotely. They also are extremely adept at virtual work and staying on task.

With the escalating health crisis in our world today, you may be new to working from home. This article via GeekWire gives some great tips and ideas about setting up your home office and how to effectively get things done in a virtual environment.

Actually finding work-life balance

Feb 25, 2020 | Business, Mental Health, Productivity, Remote Work

We love helping clients truly find that balance between their work and personal life. Our team of virtual assistants make it possible for clients not only to get more done, but to be more fulfilled and satisfied with the work that they do themselves.

This article offers some great advice on how to create that balance that is so important! 

“Work-life blend doesn’t mean that everything is happening at the same time, all the time. It’s about finding a way to fit together the important pieces.”

Read more via Medium