While many Canadians are still adjusting to work-from-home routines during the coronavirus pandemic, Lori Raudnask ditched the home-to-workplace commute decades ago.

A Stoney Creek resident, Raudnask started working from her home office back in 1988, using her advanced training techniques to help hundreds of successful entrepreneurs. By 2005, she had joined the senior leadership team of a major international franchisor.

Today she’s still helping others grow their businesses.

Raudnask is the author of "Persistence Pays: How Getting What You Want is Easier Than You Think." She’s also created an audio CD titled, “Mastering the Art of Networking,” with additional business growth strategies.

On the same morning she spoke with Hamilton Community News, Raudnask had just taken part in a Zoom meeting, interacting with people from 40 countries.

“One of the biggest things that came up on the call is we’re in an emergency situation right now, so we have to emerge through it,” said Raudnask. “How can we grow in the midst of a crisis? Most people are afraid of change. They’re afraid they’re going to be worse off.”

Raudnask has found that working from home has its benefits. But a successful strategy requires discipline.

“The most important thing is you get yourself up and you go to work like you’re going to work,” she said.

Raudnask recalls the first time she used Skype to provide training for a worker in South Africa. The technology seemed awkward at first, especially when Raudnask saw herself on a computer screen at 5:30 a.m.

Today, for many office workers, working from home is the only way to get things done. It’s also an opportunity to learn a new skill set.

“It’s going to let people tap into their own potential that they didn’t even know they had,” said Raudnask.

To make the most of your at-home workday, Raudnask recommends dressing like you’re going to the office. Take regular breaks and maybe some short neighbourhood walks. Create a separate home workspace, near a window, if possible. Put things in front of you that are inspiring, like family photos or personal mementos.

Be sure to eat lunch and snacks and be prepared by having items like boiled eggs and pre-cut vegetables in the fridge. Working from home offers a chance to enjoy foods you wouldn’t normally have at work, using the oven.

Invest in a good headset if you're working by phone but stay off social media during work hours. Raudnask recommends standing up while speaking on the phone, to elevate your energy level.

You may end up working harder at home, because the workplace is essentially always present.

“So you have to discipline yourself in both ways,” said Raudnask. “That was a learning curve for me because I had to learn not to work all of the time.”

With the nicer weather arriving, it can be tempting to go outside and do some gardening, but that’s where discipline comes into play.

“It’s about disciplining yourself to not shortchange your business but to do your best,” said Raudnask. “So it can work in a negative and a positive way.”

Raudnask postulates that the current trend towards working from home might help companies save money in the long run, as they rethink the need for large offices.

“I can have 40 countries on a Zoom call, with 160 people,” she said. “That’s pretty impressive.”

Andrea Lekushoff, president of Broad Reach Communications, said empathy and compassion are important considerations for employers looking to create a successful work-from-home plan for their employees.

“Employers are now in their employees’ homes. And employees really need to be, I think, extended a lot of empathy because there are so many situations that people are dealing with,” said Lekushoff.

Some workers may be concerned about their children’s home-based learning, for example. Others may feel anxious because they have a parent or a sick loved one they can’t see.

“The world, right now, is stressed out,” Lekushoff noted.

For families, Lekushoff recommends parents discuss on a daily basis who is going to take the kids during a particular conference call, and who will take them for a walk or help with their homework.

Assistant professor Michael Halinski of Ryerson's Ted Rogers School of Management, says an individual working from home must keep boundaries between the various aspects of the person’s life. He says when the personal and profession lives merge and there are no curbs, it creates an unhealthy work-life balance.

“Being forced out of your daily routines into an environment with new distractions can certainly be detrimental for work performance and mental health,” he said.

If you’re on a Zoom call and a cat walks by, or a toddler asks an awkward question, enjoy that moment, said Lekushoff.

“It’s only through empathy and compassion that we’ll all get through this together,” she said.

Workplaces and workplace accommodations will be impacted well into the future as well, Lekushoff predicts.

“I would highly recommend to any employer out there that if they’re looking at various scenarios for when this is eventually over, that they take into account that not everyone on their team is going to want to come back to work,” said Lekushoff. “If employers want to keep their top talent, they will have to acknowledge that, and make those accommodations.”

Workplaces could adapt with more closed office environments and design changes could alter the way workers interact with one another on the shop floor, for example.

“I think at this point in time, it will change how offices, how plants and how manufacturing facilities and even grocery stores, how all of those companies will not only produce but deliver their services,” Lekushoff added.

“While people are working from home, leadership and communication are more important than ever. Employees need to hear from their leaders,” said Lekushoff.

While businesses are shoring up cash flows, they should maintain clear communication with employees and stakeholders, in a frequent and honest manner.

“Be remembered as the leader who reached out and said, 'How are you doing?' ” said Lekushoff.

Lekushoff noted some companies are holding virtual team-building activities, like Zoom coffee chats or even a virtual happy hour near the end of the workday, to keep employees energized and motivated.

- With a file from Kevin Werner

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STORY BEHIND THE STORY: With more and more workplaces adapting to the new realities of working from home amid the coronavirus pandemic, we reached out to some local professionals for tips and insight.