Work From Home (During a Pandemic): Recent Episodes
Knowable
There are hundreds of guides on the internet about how to work from home, but none seem to address the unique challenges of remote work when the world is turned upside down.
Working from home—or even working at all—is a privilege right now. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy.
In this course, the Knowable team and a group of experts share real-world, real-talk advice on everything from setting expectations, to finding focus, and what to do if you’re a parent struggling to work and look after your kids at the same time. We’re building this course in real time, on the fly, with you, our listeners. We’ll take your questions and source the best experts to give you concrete advice on how to navigate the “new normal”—when life feels anything but.
In this lesson, we’re covering the big changes in the workplace. How have some leaders stepped up? And how have our expectations (of ourselves and others) changed since the pandemic started?
Current leadership should be valuing outcome over output. Hamza Khan, a TED speaker, author and educator, reminds us that now is not the time to micromanage. Hamza recommends that people in charge of organizations need to put their people first, rather than the company’s mission. Set aside time to ask your employees or coworkers how they are really doing right now.
We also talk with Karen Dillon, the former editor of the Harvard Business Review and the coauthor of three books with the innovation and disruption expert, Clayton Christensen. She explains that this pandemic is a good time to recalibrate. Now, in quarantine, we’re very aware of how we’re spending every minute. Are the things you’re spending your time and energy on worth it?
We’ve also noticed a lot of WFH burnout. Because work has blended so much into home, try to build in time for rest and recharge. Hamza suggests doing more of what feels good, and less of what doesn’t.
Finally, in between the moments of stress and disorientation, this crisis has created the opportunity to really check in with what our values are. We’re given a unique opportunity to build our post-pandemic lives in a thoughtful way. So, embrace the clean slate quality of this time.
Amy O'Leary is a former New York Times journalist who now works as a consultant and strategist for media companies. She got her start as a small town newspaper reporter, became a producer at public radio's "This American Life" and has led big teams at Upworthy and Headspace. She lives in Los Angeles with her family.
Josh Levs is an entrepreneur, former CNN and NPR journalist, and the leading global expert on modern fathers in the workplace. He is the author of the award-winning book All In: How Our Work-First Culture Fails Dads, Families, and Businesses–And How We Can Fix It Together.
Karen Dudley has been a marriage and family therapist and child development specialist for over 40 years. She serves on the executive board of the Association of Child Development Specialists.
Jessica Cunningham is an astrophysicist turned cancer biologist who works as a research scientist at the Moffitt Cancer Center. She has been working from home for almost a decade, and lives in Virginia with her husband and two young daughters.
It's hard to concentrate in a crisis, but for those working from home for the first time, we offer expert advice on how to keep your focus, and your job.
Meet your course guide, former New York Times journalist Amy O'Leary, and learn about this special course from Knowable.
In the first lesson, Amy speaks with Dr. Guy Winch, who literally wrote the book on emotional first aid, and has over ten million views on his TED talk on the topic. In the first lesson, you’ll learn how to:
- Quickly adjust to a new way of working
- Go easy on yourself and others
- Use the “distraction” of work to stay mentally healthy
- Set healthy parameters around checking the news
- Build genuine camaraderie while working remote
...and much more.
Introducing Work from Home (During a Pandemic): The human guide to managing your job — and your emotions — in difficult times.