How My VoIP Business Phone Systems Has Saved My Sanity During Lockdown(s).
Random statement I know, however, living through a pandemic I think we can all agree that where and how we work, especially if we are office based, has changed and probably won’t ever go back to how we used to work. By the time restrictions are lifted, working from home, has the potential to be ‘the norm’. Great for the environment, less commuting, less travelling for meetings, less commuter coffee being brewed in towns and cities (which I guess means less impact on the environment), but not so great on my mental health. Like all businesses up and down the UK, website designers, graphic designers, SEO consultants, IT people and all the rest of us that work in the industry, are finding themselves working remotely, from home. Don’t get me wrong, I love my home, I am very lucky that I live in a little village, surrounded by copious amount of countryside to explore. However, the pandemic has taught me that living and working by yourself or just your partner, is very isolating - (also quite irritating when you are attached to a retired couple that intend to spend the entire pandemic DIY’ing everyday). If you are like me, and a little bit creative, I love to work in a room full of people to bounce my ideas off, shout at the computer when photoshop crashes and know that your fellow designer feels your pain and provides sympathy. All sounds a bit needy doesn’t it when say it like that, but my point is, even making a cup of tea for you and your work buddies, provides a natural break and a bit of banter. Being around others provides a subconscious motivational blanket.
So, even though I can’t be with my work buddies in person, cloud based telecommunications over the last year has really stepped in to help. I am lucking enough to have what is called a feature rich business phone system, that turns my laptop, or my iMAC into a softphone, with group video calling functionality, as do my work colleagues. We have all agreed that a few hours every day, we group video call and just leave it open, while we all work. Creates a better working vibe, by providing the background noises we are all used to. Just remember to hang up on a comfort break, especially if your toilet is like mine and opposite my home office or atleast mute your microphone.
But even if you don’t have an all singing all dancing VoIP phone system, like we do from Westbrook Communications (yup a plug, but they were really helpful, knowledgeable and helped us to adapt our business phone system back in March 2020).
There are alternatives, such as zoom, or my personal favourite concept an online service called Focus Mate. A service that teams you up with random people working from home around the world for 50 minutes. You have a chance to chat to them for 5 minutes then you start working. At the end of the 50 minutes, you say goodbye. If you find someone you like and it is mutual you can become their work buddy again. Sounds a little strange, I know, but if you are a freelancer, or your company doesn’t have the best cloud based phone system, it might be a viable alternative. Just remember what I said about comfort breaks.
I speak from embarrassing experience.
