Whether you’re working from home with school aged children during this period of quarantine and social distancing or, alternatively, working from home in a serene blissful oasis, you are likely looking for ways to maintain connections. For many of us working remotely from our homes, staying connected to other parents, colleagues, family, friends, and my community has become vital to maintaining some sense of normalcy in this unpredictable and overwhelming time.
Platforms for Working and Socializing Remotely
Platforms like GoToMeeting and Zoom used to be mostly for work meetings and professional networking, but are now being used to keep all of us socially engaged and (mostly) well-balanced while we work and live apart. Here are some online group activities that can help us avoid feeling too isolated:
- Log in for lunch with coworkers: Just because we are no longer gathering in our office cafes, kitchens, and cafeterias doesn’t mean we must eat lunch every day in isolation. Coordinate with your coworkers to have lunch together through a web conference program a few times a week to check in, keep your team connected, and continue your good-hearted practice of openly judging everyone’s lunch food.
- Host a happy hour: Unwinding at the end of stressful “work at home” day has never been more popular or necessary. Setting aside time to join a group of colleagues, neighbors, family or friends to discuss the challenges or successes of the day is a wonderful way to manage stress and maintain social contact.
- Virtual Playdates: Kids need to maintain their social connections too and, with Virginia schools out of session for the rest of the academic year, many educators and coaches are finding creative ways to help their students stay in touch until in person get together are safe again. With web meetings, parents can help their children participate in group video chats with their classmates or teammates they previously saw each day.
- Remote Fitness: Live fitness classes are more popular than ever before, including interactive group classes using platforms like Zoom. In certain virtual workout classes, instructors can see class members and offer feedback and encouragement live during the class. The classes also are arranged to allow for pre and post workout social time for the participants, which helps it feel more like a traditional group work out.
- Remote Education: Many universities and online learning sites have made certain lectures free, or have subscription services. Most of these are pre-recorded videos that you can access or subscribe to (ie Masterclass or Harvard’s EdX Classes). But interacting with other students or subscribers through message boards or chats about the lectures and classes can be great ways to engage your mind through learning while staying social, and potentially to make new friends.
There are many platforms out there that might be more or less accessible to you, depending on what your office uses and what kinds of devices your friends and family own.
Get Advice from Other Professionals
Also please note that depending on your inclination to take a class or sign up for a fitness regime, you’ll have to follow their recommendations for whatever platform they are using. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your personal instructors or friends who take live online classes to see if they are offering courses for free, and what platform they are using.
How to Get Started
Here are a few options to help you get started if you’d like to make yourself an account or set up a virtual hangout:
CGG uses GoToMeeting (https://www.gotomeeting.com/). This is a paid monthly platform, but is great for office use as well as socializing with your coworkers, because it is encrypted and HIPPAA compliant. Plans have different pricing ranges, charged on either a monthly or annual basis. Most importantly for all of us right now, there is a 14 day free trial, no payment information required, which you can use to check out its features and host meetings for your professional friends as you figure out if this site suits your needs.
Another great option is Zoom (https://zoom.us/). Zoom has many professionally oriented paid options that can work well for you, but they also have a free option called Basic – Personal Meeting that is perfect for socializing, connecting with family, and even for smaller business’ non-confidential networking needs. Zoom has put together a great page of resources for how people can use it most effectively throughout the current COVID-19 crisis. Find that here: https://zoom.us/docs/en-us/covid19.html
And of course, don’t forget the basics that brought us into teleconferencing and talking face-to-face. Skype, Google Duo (Android user friendly), and FaceTime (iOS users only) are all great, phone-accessible options that are free.
Tips on Working Remotely from Family Lawyers in Fairfax
The bottom line is that even though we may be self-isolating or quarantining right now, we can all still stay connected and social. Hold your friends and loved ones close through the power of technology!