It’s no secret that many of us are working from home as a result of these unprecedented times. Now whether you prefer this way of working or not – the reality is it might be like this way for a while and perhaps become a regular part of some organizations routines when things do eventually return to ‘normal’. Other than the obvious, a strong wifi connection – what else can you do to make your work from home routine work for you?
Ergonomic Workspace
A functional and dedicated workspace is key for productivity at home. If you can, try to allocate an area of your home only for work use. Working at a desk or table with a functional chair is crucial; the worst thing we can do is work from our beds or couch. It’s important to position yourself correctly with arms and back in with a proper 90-degree posture at your desk, with elbows aligned to the chair. You want to ensure you’re not overarching your back and leaning into your workspace. To help facilitate this try using one or multiple monitors, and refrain from utilizing your laptop directly. Having a separate mouse and keyboard will help keep your back straight and reduce strain on eyes as well. Lastly, make sure your screen is at least a forearms length away from your body, this ensures you are not putting excessive strain on your neck either pulling forward or back.
Keep an Open Line of Communication
Although you are not in person, it doesn’t mean that the communication between your colleagues must suffer in the process. Utilize tools such as Skype, Google Hangouts or Zoom. Video conferencing apps are having a moment, and its obvious why. They allow you to engage with others through the comfort your home whether it be sharing project files, ideas or providing recommendations.
Be available and constructive in your conversations, it’s easy to veer off topic but it’s important to remember everyone is in the same boat so don’t be afraid to have that water cooler chat albeit virtually
Take Breaks, Prioritize Your Health
Working from home we can often forget to take the necessary breaks as we did in a normal office setting. Therefore it’s important to schedule in 10-15 minutes of increments of breaks within your calendar. This forces you to get up from your chair, walk around, stretch and perhaps even get a cup of joe.
There is an incredible amount of autonomy in the current work setting, and even though we stay contact with our team to collaborate, we are still faced with an increased number of decisions that need to be made individually – which can prove to be overwhelming or stressful.
Taking breaks will help avoid the feeling of mental and physical burnout – that can potentially occur. On a larger scale, studies have indicated that employees who take regular breaks and in large part more satisfied with their employer, and the company shows a shorter rate of turnover.
Set Up Work and Social Boundaries
Establishing daily work hours is one of the most important things you can do for yourself in order to maintain a distinct balance between home and work. Obviously if you have children or other responsibilities to take care of this will factor in. Ideally, creating one start time and end time to your workday will be key. This will ensure you don’t develop the habit of checking emails on your phone non-stop or remain at your desk for long hours. If you work with a company in which non-traditional hours are required, speak with your manager on how to set a healthy balance.
Avoid Distractions
The obvious distractions can be smart phones, social media, easy access to a T.V. can prove to be more of a distraction than in your previous work setting. It’s crucial to limit your time and remember it’s very easy getting caught up in the next Buzzfeed quiz, of “Which Kardhasian are you?” thus making boundaries all the more necessary. However, don’t be fooled as distractions aren’t just limited to your device. Another important thing to consider is where you are situated, which means observing where your desk is facing and what exactly within your immediate environment could pose as a possible distraction. This could be facing a desk with a noisy street or having the kitchen a little too close by.
Evaluating all these potential distractors can help you significantly with your productivity. This helps you strike a balance between a healthy work and personal life. Remember to use your time wisely and disengage where needed.
Adjusting to a ‘new normal’ with limited notice won’t necessarily bode well for everybody as each person is different. Therefore, by taking the time to see what works for you can aid with productivity. These tips encourage you to adapt and stick with a routine, without sacrificing your mental and physical health.
Guest blog by Gia Gill. Gia is an experienced marketing communications professional based in Toronto.
For a lot of people, their passion is their “side-hustle”, something they do on the side of doing their day job or higher education.
Thanks to this, pursuing your creative tasks and trying to build something outside of the usual 9-5 (whether it be a business, a chance to break into another industry, or something else) usually means finding a way to get lots of stuff done in a relatively short space of time.
When you work 40 hours a week at your day job, you have to make the most of your free time to work on whatever it is that’s calling you, whether it be video editing for a Youtube channel, writing blog posts, promoting your social media, building your community… or even rehearsing for a show. For a lot of people, it can be a tricky balancing act trying to stay motivated when they are tired or are seeing very slow progress.
So how can you optimise the time you work at home to get the best results, without working yourself into exhaustion? And how can you stay motivated when on one side you have Netflix, and the other side you have your fridge??
The Pomodoro method is a really simple “time management” method where you work consistently for 25 minutes, then you take a 5-minute break.
The only rule is that when you are in the 25-minute working time you can ONLY do your work, and nothing else. You can’t let yourself get distracted, and you can’t get up to get a drink. It can be hard to discipline yourself to work even for 25 minutes, so knowing that you only have to work for short increments before taking a short break can help you to stay motivated and productive.
The good news is this method can work with anything, from writing content for your website to rehearsing your lines. You can even download the app and have it working in the background as you’re working!
2 – Dress the part.
A lot can be said for the psychological element that clothes have when we wear them.
If you wake up in your pyjamas on Saturday and stay in them all day, you’re probably not going to be in the “work” mindset. Get up, get clean and put on some really nice clothes that make you feel good and ready to tackle the day, and your work.
3 – Set clear, achievable goals.
When you know exactly what you want, and you consider all the steps it will take to get there, it is so much easier to know what to do and when. Rather than seeing a mountain in front of you with your “end goal” at the top, you see a path with lots of markers, telling you you’re a quarter of the way there, now a half, now three quarters…
It makes a huge difference to your motivation because it makes a seemingly long and hard task seem so much easier. You feel more in control of reaching your goal, and you know what to do to stay on track.
4 – Surround yourself with motivated people.
Sometimes we need people to help remind us what it is we’re working for. Even the most passionate artist can lose hope and faith when tiredness or despair strikes – and it happens to all of us.
Being surrounded by people who understand and are of a like mind – and spending time with those who will push you to carry on even when you don’t feel like it – can be a great source of motivation. Even if it’s just a quick coffee with a fellow artist, it can do wonders for your productivity!
5 – Understand what you gain from doing this task.
The problem with a lot of everyday tasks is that they’re really boring and don’t seem to give us any reward for doing them. Going to the post office to send a letter to your electricity company, or emailing someone about a refund… they’re hardly likely to stir any excitement in your soul.
The thing is, your passion will also have aspects that you don’t really enjoy, such as administrative tasks, or trying to figure out how to resize an image to fit your Twitter page etc. But if you understand how they fit in to the “bigger picture” you’ll feel far more motivated to do them. The same can be said for most things in life.
Understanding the positive effect they’ll have will spur you on to do them. Perhaps you hate trying to figure out how to resize an image for your Twitter header… but when it’s done all your social media will look cohesive and you will have a more professional identity!
6 – Set up your workspace.
Don’t work whilst sitting in your bed or whilst absent-mindedly watching TV! Have a set workplace, make it really welcoming and enjoyable to be in, and have that space only for working.
Make it light, airy and organised, with plenty of room to spread your work out… somewhere you’ll look forward to sitting for long amounts of time. The plus side is that everywhere else in your house will then be relaxing in comparison as you will have just one space reserved for work, and the rest for chilling.
7 – Get organised.
It’s so much easier to work when everything is kept up-to-date, things are neat and tidy, and you know where everything is. Simple things like not saving your files in the right place, having a messy desktop (both physical and computer), not saving appointments into your calendar etc are all sure ways to make you dread doing any task.
With so many problems and so much effort required just to, for example, find the right file, it’ll only give you more reason to procrastinate. Help yourself and stay organised!
8 – Let yourself rest.
There’s no use in forcing yourself to work work work when you can’t concentrate on the work you want to do. If you’re simply too tired, or your brain has done enough for the day and needs to relax, let it! Consistently forcing yourself to work when you’re exhausted will lead to burnout and even depression.
If it means limiting your side-passion to only 2 days a week then that may be the option you have to take. There’s no use in trying to build something great when you don’t have the health to sustain it.
Do you find it hard to stay motivated when creating from home? Leave a comment below!
With every new year comes a whole lot of new year’s resolutions; these can often be hard to stick to, and sometimes are even difficult to come up with in the first place. So for all of you artists out there, we’ve put together a list of 5 relatively simple to follow social media new year’s resolutions that will be sure to keep you stress free, all while helping you earn new fans and followers!
Spend 30 Minutes Per Day on Social Media
Seems simple enough, right? Spending a minimum of 30 minutes a day on social media can help you see a dramatic change in your online presence. Use this time to check your major social platforms, talk to current followers, reach out to potential fans/collaborators, and post new content. Dedicating this small amount of time every day may not seem like much, but it can really make the difference in the long run.
Engage More With Your Followers
Why do you think it’s called social media? If you’re only using your social channels to post content, you’re only fighting half the battle. Engaging and conversing with followers and fans on social media is an absolutely crucial way to build your fanbase. Respond to comments on your posts, thank followers for sharing your content, and use hashtag searches to find relevant posts and accounts where you can create your own conversations.
[Tweet “Why do you think it’s called social media? If you’re only using your social channels to post content, you’re only fighting half the battle.”]
Find Your Best Social Platform, and OWN It
Although being present on multiple social platforms and having a huge following on various channels would obviously be ideal, it isn’t a necessity – especially if you’re just starting out. Do some research to find out who your core demographic is, and what social platform they typically use the most. Also think about which platform would be best to promote your specific type of work and reach potential followers. For a rundown on different popular social platforms and what each is best for, take a look at our post here.
Learn a new Social Platform
This one may seem a little overwhelming, but partnered with our first resolution idea, it’s quite easily achievable. Many platforms make things simple with user-friendly interfaces and designs, and there are more than enough tutorials and articles on the internet that are available to help with almost any problem you may face. Just be sure to learn a platform that is going to work with your goals as well as the artwork you’re creating. Not sure where to start? Here are a few suggestions for up and coming social networks that speak to artists. If you’re a musician, have some fun with Musical.ly , the social network dedicated to music lovers. If you’re an actor, YouTuber or any kind of content creator who loves live video, check out Hype, which is a combination of Vine meets Snapchat meets Facebook Live! If you’re looking for a professional platform to showcase your creative work (think LinkedIn for artists) Behance, is a great tool to display your portfolio while connecting with other artists.
Put Some Money Into Paid Social Ads
Paid advertisements on social channels are an amazing way to boost your follower growth, as well as put your work in front of eyes that may have never seen it otherwise. And the best part about paid ads, is that you get to choose exactly how much money you want to spend, and exactly when you want to stop. With only a few dollars a day, you can put out content that can help you see a significant change in the way you use social media.
Hopefully this list puts your mind at ease a little bit when it comes to thinking of that New Year’s resolution; just stay focused and stay determined and you’ll be sure to see results. But most importantly, Happy New Year!
With the official close of Honest Ed’s on December 31st, 2016, we’ve looked back on the incredible (and eccentric) things Ed Mirvish did in his years. Equal parts artist and entrepreneur, creative business owners can learn a lot from Ed.
Who the Heck is Ed Mirvish?
Ed Mirvish, born July 1914, is known as a businessman, humanitarian, philanthropist and theatre worshipper. Although he was a serial entrepreneur, he is best known for Honest Ed’s as well as reviving the Toronto theatre scene. He lived until 2007 and passed at the age of 93, yet his legacy remains.
Honest Ed’s opened at the corner of Bloor and Bathurst in 1948, where it quickly became known for extremely low prices along with hand painted signage and corny slogans such as: “Don’t faint at our low prices; there’s no place to lie down!”
Image source: GIFY
[Tweet ” “Don’t faint at our low prices; there’s no place to lie down!””]
Ed was known for pulling crazy publicity stunts to get anyone into his store. He let his creativity roam free by hosting a triplet’s fashion show, a seventy-two-hour dance marathon and other bizarre events. Aside from his original marketing ideas, Ed was known for being extremely generous. Every Christmas, he would give away thousands of free turkeys and fruit cakes to the public. Also being a natural entertainer, at the age of 75, Ed decided to host birthday parties for himself outside his store, giving away gifts, food, drinks, entertainment and rides for the public.
Not only did Ed Mirvish create a thriving store, his family also owns four downtown theatres, the Princess of Wales, Royal Alexandra, the Panasonic, and the Ed Mirvish Theatre attracting world-class shows and creating a little piece of Broadway in Toronto.
Ed Mirvish’s accomplishments and big personality make him a top creative entrepreneur. Here are 6 reasons why Ed Mirvish is the quintessential entrepreneur of our time.
1. He Gave Back to His Community
Through his eclectic ventures, Ed impacted community members from all walks of life. While affluent theatre goers packed the houses of his stage productions, he incorporated philanthropy into his bargain store, with giveaways that included turkeys for thousands of low income customers on Christmas Day. He gave back to artists by offering them affordable housing in Mirvish village. According to Canadiana Connection, Ed was no stranger to being recognised for such contributions. Among the 250 awards he received in his lifetime, one was the prestigious Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and another Officer of the Order of Canada. Talk about an entrepreneur who gives back to his tribe!
[Tweet “Ed Mirvish’s accomplishments and big personality make him a top creative entrepreneur.”]
2. He Knew how to Throw a Party
At the age of 75, Ed started throwing himself some killer parties. Complete with clowns, musicians, free food and gifts, his celebrations were so grand that they were known as his annual “birthday festival.” According to artist Dr. Judith Cohen, for a month, Ed had a giant-sized balloon sculpture of himself affixed to the roof so that you could see him waving his hand in the wind from blocks away. On his actual birthday, July 24, an entire block of Markham Street was closed to traffic for revellers to enjoy themselves. His 72-hour dance marathons in the late 60s were always a hit. Think dancers in the aisles, a DJ in the store window, prizes and a party so wild Ed was constantly ticketed for being loud and blocking the street. Now that was a party you did not want to miss!
3. He Paved his own Path, no Matter how Weird and Unconventional
A marketing guru, Ed constantly thought of ways to draw customers to his store. In his late 50’s and early 60’s, he recruited 21 sets of triplets to take part in his “Triplets Fashion Show”. Over time, Honest Ed’s became a tourist hot spot, his personality infused into the store’s eccentric signs, corny slogans and bright colours. Ed knew his brand inside out.
4. He let his Passion for Theatre Guide his Business Decisions
Though he was a “businessman,” Ed did not neglect his passion for art. Besides putting his personality into Honest Ed’s, Ed purchased the Princess of Wales, Royal Alexandra, the Panasonic, and the Ed Mirvish Theatre. He opened a museum to showcase his collection of costumes and props. On a smaller scale, Honest Ed’s alleyway was home to the Toronto Fringe Festival hub. A special event for local thespians and artists, The Fringe Festival celebrates under-represented voices, allowing artists of any level to perform for an audience.
5. He had Multiple Revenue Streams
A true entrepreneur, Ed knew how to diversify his revenue stream. Knowing his customers wanted convenience, he provided “services that are uncommon in department stores,” such as a dentist, eye doctor, hairdresser and immigration help.
6. He had Mad Ambition and Never Gave Up
Before Honest Ed’s was a huge success, Ed had many companies that “failed”. Despite that, he never stopped exploring new ways to achieve success. From delivery boy to thespian to king of the bargain basement, Ed is now known for his store, and several theatres, galleries and restaurants that have become important parts of Toronto’s history. We can all learn a thing or two from Ed Mirvish!
Toronto For Everyone
Before Honest Ed’s officially comes to an end, Toronto for Everybody will be hosting a 3-day extravaganza taking place February 23rd to 26th, 2017. Hosted by Centre for Social Innovation, experience the iconic bargain store one last time! This time, artists take over to create an experience like never before. This event extravaganza is filled with a town hall, cocktail gala, theatre, immersive art maze, bargain city, dancing, workshops, panel discussions and parties! This is an event not to be missed: Check out the schedule HERE!
Sad to see Honest Ed’s go? What were some of your favourite memories? Would love to know in the comments below!
Lara Harb is the founder and creative director of The Social Media Aritsts. She helps artists in developing their online presence that is unique and genuine to them. Lara is also a public speaker and college instructor.
