F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. -- Who would have thought three months ago that I would be doing my job while working from home? I never would have dreamed it, but the reality is that a lot of us are doing just that. Another fact is that while teleworking, it can become very easy for every day to seem like Groundhog Day. The days begin to blend together and seem like today is just like yesterday. Every day feels like the same old routine.
To combat that sense of monotony, there are a lot of things you can do to maintain positivity while working from home. Everyone has control over their own morale, and in essence, you are in control of your work schedule.
“You have control over your productivity, so do things that help you to remain positive,” said Glenn Garcia, Family Advocacy Clinical Social Worker. “These can be things as simple as being your own boss and creating deadlines to complete things.”
We are all used to being given deadlines while at work and data supports that when we are given deadlines, we are much more productive.
There are also other ways to avoid the daily monotony or the Groundhog Day effect that seems to set in while teleworking.
“These can be things as simple as creating some type of gratitude ritual,” said Garcia. “Provide yourself with some type of reward for meeting a deadline or producing a good product, and the reward can be as simple as taking a break before transitioniong to your next task. Do something simple like stepping outside to soak up some sunshine or check-in on a co-worker to see how they are doing.”
We are all experiencing new things as we adapt to the challenges of telework.
“Some of the challenges can be things such as transitioning a dining room table to a home office,” said Joseph Martini, 90 Missile Wing, Community Support Coordinator. “Also, there are a number of other stressors such as anxiety or simply thinking about the unknown during this pandemic.”
If resiliency tips don’t seem to help, don’t be afraid to reach out to one of the helping agencies available 24/7 to provide help, or to listen about issues you may be experiencing.
“Remember that the Air Force Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is there for you,” said Martini. “Services are available for DoD civilian employees and their families, and they are provided free of cost.”
f you have further questions concerning resiliency skills call the Community Support Coordinator office at (307) 773-4552 or would like to schedule an appointment with the Mental Health clinic, call (307) 773-2998.
For questions concerning the EAP program, please contact via phone or web conference at 1-866-580-9078 or visit www.afpc.af.mil/eap. You can also visit Facebook@AirforceEAP for the lastest news.