Mornings are serene, no alarm clocks, no cacophony of morning deliveries and no mini anxiety attacks over what to wear for the day. Slow start to the day with enough time for meditation and exercise. I can just lounge around in home clothes, work from any corner of the house while my favourite music is streaming in the background. The aroma of freshly baked banana bread is wafting through the house. Leisurely long lunches with family in afternoons, without worrying about the evening trek through traffic to get home.
Work from home days were supposed to be perfect. That was the expectation in my mind and I am sure for lot of others too.
However reality is a world apart.
Work from home is clearly tough. Especially during these unprecedented times. As a creative agency we thrive on collaboration, while we always had our infrastructure ready and most work on cloud, we were quick to make the switch. But come on, brainstorming and debating an idea over a call is not the same as doing so together in our chai tapri brainstorming meets :). Also work and home life blends in, it's difficult to draw a line since all of us at Tonic are also working hard to ensure if we can help our clients mitigate the impact of the current situation. Some days are much busier than a normal work day.
As a team we are communicating more than ever and not just on work. So, usually my mornings start with a catch up call with various team members, discussing things that need immediate attention. Late evenings are again with Tonickers, but for an activity that we all participate in. Either we are playing a quick game, or someone is doing a live workout class or the musicians in the team are getting together for a sunset jam over Hangout call. These little things and the way everyone is rallying along together makes the day a breeze to go through.
Working from home has though made me a pro multi-tasker, making me juggle between mopping and a pitch presentation seamlessly. Also, has reinforced that my family really loves me looking at the way they have embraced the kitchen experiments of an amateur YouTube trained chef.
Next on the list is that elusive freshly baked banana bread. Maybe expectations will be a reality soon.
The author is chief strategy officer and director - India and MENA region, Tonic Worldwide
