Where's the OFF button?

Listening to my client Helen describe her challenges about transitioning to working from home I learned she is frustrated by having to share her personal space with her work and colleagues. She feels the lines for her and her team are blurred. If she misses an unscheduled call she's asked where she was. She feels obliged to respond to every email or message directed to her almost immediately.

Working from home for Helen is not the flexibility and balance that others enjoy. She desperately wants to return to the office where she can have a clear start to her work day and a clear end. She missed arriving into her workplace and chatting with a colleague as they made a coffee together, sharing stories and updates of their personal life. She missed the banter, grabbing a sandwich with some of her favourite people and the occasional Friday drink. Then she missed being able to walk away at the end of the day, leave her computer in the office and focus on life outside work until she returns. She wanted to sit for an hour commute each day and listen to a podcast and prepare for the day and then wind back down before facing her family.

I asked her to describe her typical day working from home. Helen said her messages and emails start to arrive from early morning with a common expectation that they will be answered immediately as everyone is at home and on their phones/laptops. She eats breakfast standing up while responding to something then transitions to the desk at some point, in time for their 9.30am daily meeting. Her team have always been very efficient in their standups, 2 mins each, give an update and no side conversations and then it's over and she's back to trying to focus while multiple communications arrive all day and into the evening.

A couple of things jumped out at me immediately. The first thing I wanted to raise was the seeming loss of the comradery between Helen and her team mates. Productivity was on track but the spirit of the team had been lost. So, we discussed the importance of casual catch ups and agreed that online remote working does not as easily lend itself to easy connections with our colleagues. We know that our mental health improves with After tackling this issue together Helen's plan for the week included:

• Helen decided to introduce a 'coffee call' with her colleagues in one to one or small groups ensuring that enough time was scheduled for individuals to relax, share stories and invest in their relationships.

• Another idea was to introduce a Friday 4pm drink and team online catch up with no obligation to attend. We discussed the value in the whole team attending but Helen explained culturally this wouldn't be the 'norm' for the team and with less opportunity to read body language re-call it was best to open it up as an option. Of course, we also discussed the change for those individuals who may have their children home with them after school.

• Helen will propose to her team a shared lunch weekly.

The next thing of course was the lack of boundaries agreed in the team. Changing the work environment without agreeing a new set of ways of working had meant that what Helen was feeling an intrusion.

• Helen and her team have set working hours in their shared calendars including lunchtimes and any other break where they will not be available for calls. The team have also decided to change the technology they use for 'chatting' and no longer use the same system for work as they would for their personal life.

• In their weekly reflection meeting the team will also offer any examples of what has not worked for them throughout the week in balancing their work/life balance so that problems can be identified and addressed quickly and also this should offer a chance to bridge the

Helen's experience is not unique. Team mate comradery can be a large part of an individual's identity and an important factor in happiness at work. Finding opportunities to connect with each other may mean being creative but will certainly benefit everyone involved.