With the permission of the internal comms team of the company, here the full interview.
***
Boston, May 29th, 2020
Working from home in Berlin, Germany is Pedro Rueda, a Learning Specialist on the Learning & Development team. Today, Pedro shares his WFH experience and most importantly reminds us to be kinder to ourselves.
How are you staying connected with your team and other individuals?
In L&D EU we have coffee chats after lunch. They are informal chats where we talk about tv shows, restaurants, and playlists. We try to simulate our after-lunch coffee chats that we used to have on the 9th-floor sofas with barista coffee.
How do you structure or start your day?
I usually wake up between 6:30 and 7:00 AM, I start my day with a nice cup of Colombian coffee. Afterwards I meditate, check the news, exercise for 15 minutes and then shower. I start working usually around 9:30.
The first thing I do is check my priorities, create a list of things that need to be completed by the end of the day, and then rank them. I also check my agenda and make sure that I am ready for the meetings I have that day (either with pre-reads or if it is a meeting that I requested I make sure I have a clear outcome for the call). I try to keep my mornings clear of meetings so I can focus on operations and actually completing/finishing tasks. Since I am on a global team, my afternoon is usually full of meetings with colleagues from the US.
What is your current work set up?
I have a screen, my laptop, and my iPad. I love my iPad for notes and also as a second screen. A plus in my WFH set up is Google Home. It helps me with some quick questions, timers, the radio, Spotify… during this isolation time, it may be becoming my best friend.
Is there anything you are struggling within the adjustment to WFH?
At the beginning of the WFH period (and still some nights), I was having problems sleeping. I was going to bed at 2 AM and struggling to fall asleep. It might be because I was combining my workspace with my break and personal space. My solution for it is to stand up, read a book, drink some tea, try to relax, and go back to bed. Force your body to wake up at a certain time and try to keep a routine, even in your WFH period.
Any WFH Life Hacks?
It is ok to be sad and feel lonely sometimes. It is ok to feel that you are not your 100%. It’s ok to feel weird. It’s ok if you don't wake up super early to do your morning routine. It’s ok if you do not complete your Duolingo lesson and it is ok if your diet is weird. Perfect lives are only on Instagram. In real life, we all struggle, and it is ok to feel all those emotions. Feel that, think about how you can improve, make some changes, share them with people, and move on stronger! Connect with the people you love or with your favorite person. Social distancing is only physical. Use this time to connect with old friends and your family. Use the time to think about what is next for you.
How has your WFH experience evolved?
For the first two weeks, I noticed I was spending more than 40% of my time on meetings. After that, I decided to cancel meetings that could be an email or a slack. I became more conscious about meeting time and if I/we really needed them. I also noticed that I really missed social interaction. I am Latino so a nice hug is always appreciated. My walk at noon to a restaurant with my colleagues is also missed, so my appreciation for those small yet important things has evolved.
Any current goals?
A personal goal is to complete 3 books by the end of Q2 and organize a new trip with my mother. I have also connected with old friends. I now have zoom chats on Sundays with my school friends, and on Saturdays with my nerd friends (we now have a “learning space”)
Some Wayfair goals are to implement the new hire tracker for the EU, launch the Onboarding Playbook for Hiring Managers, and work on the analytics for internal mobility – Stay tuned!
Favorite inspiring quote?
My favorite inspiring quote, and maybe one of the reasons why I love Learning and Development: ‘It’s better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have one, than to have an opportunity and not be prepared.’ -Les Brown
Favorite way to entertain yourself- movies, podcasts, music, books?
Netflix is your friend. The last show I started watching was Update (Amazon Prime). If you are a fan of sci-fi futuristic shows, you might like this one. Strategy video games like Civilization is also my favorite hobby. If you want to play online let me know! World of Warcraft is also there to enjoy.
Regarding books, right now I am reading “The Culture Map” by Erin Meyer. If you want some latin beats, here are the ones I listen to on repeat during the week: Mejores amigos (Morat), Morado (J Balvin), Un Año (Sebastian Yatra), Se Preparó (Ozuna), 11 PM (Maluma)… and if you are going to present something and need a wake-up song La La La (Shakira)… it’s true that if you want it then act like you mean it!
