{"id":2339,"date":"2020-05-05T06:36:36","date_gmt":"2020-05-05T06:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/?p=2339"},"modified":"2020-05-27T08:11:31","modified_gmt":"2020-05-27T08:11:31","slug":"the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-about-working-from-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/en\/health-nutrition\/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-about-working-from-home\/","title":{"rendered":"The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly About Working from Home"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Most countries today have several measures in place that restrict the movement of their citizens. In response to this, the water level of the Sea of Galilee<\/a> is the highest it has been since 2004, air pollution<\/a> has declined over China as well as throughout the US<\/a>, and over 250,000 sea turtles<\/a> in India have been able to lay eggs without human disturbance. However, while the environment may be bringing itself back into a state of equilibrium, those who are forced to work from home for this undefined period of time may not be doing as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of\njust talking about the environmental benefits of staying home, ZAVIT spoke with\npeople who have had to change their working style for the past few weeks to\nunderstand the pros and cons of working from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our interviewees\nwork in the journalism and high-tech industries, and they are still working on\na daily basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some\nchallenges presented while working from home include slower internet\nconnections, miscommunications with colleagues, staying motivated, and not having\nenough separation between business and pleasure. In particular, Molly, who\nworks in high-tech, said, \u201cI work on the creative team at my company, and\nusually I do different types of work in different spaces to refresh my mind. So\nstaying in a small apartment and working every day alone has been strenuous on\nthat creativity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In order to\nconquer these challenges, mindsets need to shift. \u201cOvercoming these problems is\na work in progress,\u201d says Molly. \u201cI’ve tried redesigning my apartment a few\ntimes. I have new desk furniture and chairs to make a home office. I can order\nplants to make my balcony nicer. And I work out at home so I can take a break\nand forget about work.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are some positive aspects to working from home, including getting to sleep in longer, saving money, time, and stress from the lack of commute as well as eating at home, and of course, staying in pajamas, says Adi, who works in journalism. In addition, Molly has a cat and mentions that he is very happy to have her home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work-life balance seems a bit more challenging than usual. With employees working unconventional hours because of the new regulations, it is hard to be disconnected. \u201cThere really is blurred lines between work-life balance because doing work actually distracts me from being trapped in my apartment. And I like feeling productive during this time,\u201d says Molly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The work-life balance seems a bit more challenging than usual. With employees working unconventional hours because of the new regulations, it is hard to be disconnected. Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In times of crisis, we often neglect our mental health. However, these are the most crucial times to keep up with the things that make us happy. Adi mentions that since she is cooking more during her time working from home, she is focused on eating healthier. There was a consensus between the two participants that home workouts are a must in order to keep a healthy mentality. In addition, video chatting with friends and family, taking up a new hobby (for instance, embroidery), and watching new movies and TV shows are also a way to keep up mental health<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also\nspoke to people in the hospitality and cultural industries, are no longer\nworking since their places of employment will not be open for the foreseeable\nfuture. Those working in hospitality were either told that they would be going\non sick leave or unpaid leave. Dor, who worked at a bar, says, \u201cI stopped\nworking March 6th<\/sup> and will not be working until at least April 16th<\/sup>.\nI\u2019ll only be able to go back to work once nightlife resumes.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI work in\nthe Israeli Philharmonic,\u201d says Yonaton. \u201cI stopped working in the aftermath of\nthe crisis, but I am currently receiving a full salary. I do not know when I\nwill return to work, and if the crisis continues, then I will probably stop\nreceiving a salary.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the\nmeantime, those who are not getting paid are signing up for unemployment, but\nthat doesn\u2019t fully alleviate the stress that comes with this change. \u201cIf things\ncontinue for more than two weeks, my worries will increase,\u201d says Emma, who\nworked at a restaurant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, in\norder to calm nerves, some employers have kept in contact with their employees.\n\u201cEvery few days, my bosses send my other coworkers and me messages in WhatsApp\nto check in on us,\u201d says Amit, who worked at a caf\u00e9. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To help\nmaintain a healthy mental state while not working, Dor, who is still in school,\nsays he is trying to keep up with his online classes and projects. In addition,\nYonatan says, \u201cmentally, I’m fine and staying optimistic by practicing a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One thing that everyone can agree upon is that they hope that quarantine will end soon and that life will go back to normal. Until then, the consensus is to maintain some kind of schedule and normalcy as well as talking to friends, family, and picking up hobbies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This ZAVIT article was also published in\u00a0The Jewish Journal<\/a>\u00a0on 04\/27\/2020.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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