WFH solo? You’re not alone.

We caught up with a few KAYAK teammates who are living and working from home solo and asked what their best tips are on how to cope. See their tips below:

Meg, Cambridge

“I’m lucky enough to be spending my time in quarantine on Cape Cod with my dog, Winston, so we walk to the beach every day, weather permitting.”

Meg’s tips:

• Sign off at the end of the day. It is easy to stay online when you have nowhere to be, but keeping a schedule gives you some sort of normalcy.
• Video conference as much as possible. It is easy for people to understand things differently on email, so it is helpful to have regular video conferences with your team to talk through upcoming projects and initiatives. It also helps to see a friendly face on a regular basis.
• Engage in office chat groups with your colleagues that you would normally see and talk to on a daily basis.
• Houseparty. If you haven’t tried it, it is a great app for spending virtual time with friends and family. It is similar to FaceTime and Zoom, but you don’t have to call anyone. Anytime a friend is “in the house” you get a notification and can join. You can also join Houseparties with groups of 8 and people can log on and off as they wish.

Omari, San Francisco

“I’m a people person; and being around and talking to people is part of what gets me through the day. Not having anyone to randomly have a conversation with or quickly bounce an idea off of has been the most challenging part of WFH. I’ve also found it challenging being consistent with “turning off” work at a decent time. It’s become so easy just to fire up your computer and answer an email when your computer is sitting next to you.”

Omari’s tips:

• Set up a 15 minute “Daily Coffee” meeting with someone. This gives you a chance to converse with someone about work or non-work related topics.
• Put lunch on your calendar. Even if you don’t use this to actually eat lunch, it will ensure you are getting an extended break in between work and meetings.
• Schedule or participate in a group Meet or Zoom at least once a week after business hours. If you are a people person like me, this will help satisfy that group interaction feeling you may not get everyday.

Amanda, New York

“I just moved to NYC from Boston this past summer, so it’s been really hard being so far from my family during all of this. But my 10-year-old nephew loves to FaceTime and he calls me nonstop throughout the day. Setting a boundary is hard, since I obviously want to be there for him as much as I can — and, who am I kidding, he’s just as much there for me!”

Amanda’s tips:

• Embrace sweatpants. A lot of tips say to get up and get dressed, but I respectfully disagree. Living alone with only my cats to judge me means I am living that sweatpants life with no regrets. It’s not for everyone, but if you are the type of person who can easily self-motivate, I say take advantage of extra sleep and freshen up around lunchtime.
• Find a way to differentiate between your workday and your post-work life. For me, this means turning off my work laptop and changing from my day sweatpants into my night sweatpants, but it’s different for everyone. When you’re WFH alone, you don’t have another person around to nudge you away from the computer, so it’s up to you to set those boundaries.
• Bureaus make great standing desks. I don’t have a standing desk at the office, but spending so much time in my apartment means I spend a lot of time sedentary. Finding a way to create a makeshift standing desk from a dresser, window sill, or kitchen counter is a great way to spend at least a little time on your feet.

Pat, Sydney

“The biggest challenge for me working alone on my own is to be inspired and focus on tasks at hand. There are also many distractions in the form of the government rules that change almost daily and also the sense of job security.”

Pat’s tips

• Use messaging and video calls more often and not just about work talk. Have a lot more catch-ups with your team.
• Exercise is very important. I choose to do aerobics at home, there are many online videos that would get you good sessions.
• I have found that growing house plants and vegetables at home is quite relaxing.