On Monday, March 22, 2020, the New Zealand Government announced that the country was going into lockdown. During this time, I have been working from home and trying to stay productive, even though it has been challenging. I am honestly grateful for the opportunity to work from home, but I know that many people’s lives have been affected.
I was excited to start working from home for the first time, so I bought an extra office table to be more comfortable. The next morning, I looked forward to turning on my laptop and getting to work. I got to eat my breakfast without rushing while watching the news. I also did heaps of cleaning in my kitchen, which helped me feel relaxed.
To be honest, I fell off track during my first week of working from home. Not factoring in the technical problems I encountered, I think it was because I drastically changed my working hours. Before the lockdown, I worked from 6:30 am to 2:30 pm. Working from home meant more flexibility, so there were days when I started at 9 am or 10 am. At the end of the day, I felt more tired than usual and sluggish.
Though I managed to get a good amount of work done, I still felt unproductive, which made me feel guilty and ashamed. I plan to switch things up next week and will update you on the steps I take to be more productive while working from home.
There is a lot of uncertainty and panic at the moment. I am thinking about my family and friends in the Philippines during this time. All we can do is stay at home, and there is not much else we can do.
I decided to take this time as an opportunity for self-improvement and to get to know my deeper self since I cannot go outside.
I hope you are all safe, and I wish you take this time as an opportunity to spend time with yourself, your family, and the people you care about. Stay safe and sending so much love.