Uncategorized

WFH and You: Keeping Your Mental Well-Being

For more than a month most of us have been doing the work from home (WFH) routine, and we’re feeling the effects for sure. Isolation, uncertainty about the future, cabin fever … the combination is stressing out even the best of us.

We miss our co-workers (most of them, anyway). It’s great that we have Zoom meetings, but they’re just not the same. And if you’re at home with family members, you’ve probably found that it’s possible to simultaneously feel loneliness and a need for privacy.

While not having a commute is fine, that means literally no boundaries between home and office. It’s hard to concentrate on work with all the at-home distractions, but also hard to step away as the hours and days run together.

The first thing to understand is that while you may be physically alone, you’re not alone in experiencing whatever your state of mind is right now. We’re all adjusting in our own way, and some are handling things better than others, but we’re all struggling to some degree.

What to do about it? A few suggestions:

Boundaries: Have a schedule for work … and a schedule for play. When you set a finish line you protect yourself from the never-ending WFH workday. And physical boundaries are important too: give yourself a private work area if you can.

Analog time: Screen breaks should be a part of your day in any situation, but they’ve never been more important. Chances are pretty good that you’re staring at a computer screen all day, Netflix all night and your phone in between. Your brain and your eyes need relief. Try an old-fashioned book or a jigsaw puzzle instead, and put that time on your schedule too.

Move it: Exercise helps with stress and anxiety, of course, and it’s never been more important. Get a daily walk in, and if you can do that surrounded by nature instead of traffic, even better. If the weather’s not cooperating, make an exception to the screen-time rule and find workout videos you like online, but do something every day.

Connect: You may have Zoom fatigue in your business life, but it is a good tool to connect with friends and family. No, it’s not as much fun as being together, but it beats not connecting at all.

Unprecedented times call for a change in habits. These will help.

Questions about your work environment? Contact Douron.

Cleaners and Disinfectants recommended by the CDC to combat COVID-19

Cleaners and disinfectants recommended by the CDC to combat COVID-19 when cleaning guidelines are followed as directed:

Detergent or Soap and Water (prior to disinfection)
1:5 Bleach/Water Solution
Alcohol-Based Cleaners (at least 70% alcohol)
Quaternary-Based Disinfectants
Hydrogen-Peroxide Based Cleaners

NOTE: As always, when using any disinfectant, it is important to follow the manufacturer’s instructions, not saturate the surface of the fabric or vinyl, and remove all residue with a clean, damp cloth so the surface of the fabric or vinyl will not be damaged.

For additional information on COVID-19, please visit CDC.gov.

The safety and well-being of our customers are very important to us. We urge all to take precautions to remain healthy and inhibit the spread of the virus.

COVID-19 UPDATE 3/30/19

Douron is operational to provide service to our employees, clients, partners and community. We have received required status for distribution to essential companies per state and federal guidelines.

We are continually monitoring the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) for daily updates to provide our employees a safe and healthy working environment.

We have established a continuity plan that relies on email, virtual meetings and remote connectivity as our primary contact and response method. With our soft phone application, our employees can be reached at their normal extensions. Messages left on team members’ work phones are monitored and answered as quickly as possible.

Our showrooms in Baltimore, Rockville and Delaware are closed until further notice. We’re actively using remote strategies along with virtual client meetings to keep daily operations running as usual. All of our facilities are being cleaned and disinfected regularly to ensure a safe work environment.

MANUFACTURING PARTNERS

Douron is monitoring the operational status of our manufacturing partners and we will provide updates, as we receive them, via email.

SALES

Account Executives will continue to be available by their standard email addresses, phone extensions and mobile phone numbers. All responses to projects from ourAccount Executives will be via email or phone.

CUSTOMER SERVICE SUPPORT

Douron has temporarily transitioned headquartered team members to work remotely. Our continuity plan has been tested to make an easy transition as not to delay our ability to serve you.

WAREHOUSE, DELIVERY AND INSTALLATION (WD&I)

Currently, Douron is accepting all shipments and making deliveries, while safely completing projects. There is restricted entry for delivery drivers to our warehouse and paperwork is being delivered to the door. Our warehouse team has been provided rubber gloves, masks and disinfecting spray to utilize upon receipt of product and to use as necessary. All WD&I employees have proper documentation of the nature of their delivery being essential to the operations of our clients.

After installation, all furniture surfaces and cabinet are sprayed and disinfected. We want to ensure a safe installation process. Our employees are aware and following (CDC) guidelines of daily cleaning of tools and
building materials; washing hands as often as possible; covering coughs and sneezes with tissues and avoiding touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.

WARRANTY AND CLAIMS

Our Corrective Actions Department is reviewing all claims made by clients and reporting information to the appropriate manufacturer.

If you are experiencing any warranty or service related issues, please fill out a warranty request form at https://douron.com/warranty-request/or email correctiveactions@douron.com.

Thank you for your support and patience during this challenging time. We are working together with you to provide safe and healthy environments.

Social Distancing and Self Quarantine

Social Distancing and Self Quarantine? Here’s What to Do:

Telecommuting, or working from home, has been on the rise for several years now as improved technology has made it easier to connect and collaborate. All of a sudden, however, many more workers have been asked to stay home in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and with very little time to prepare.

If you’re new to telecommuting, here are some tips to get you off on the right foot.

Find your space. While you don’t need an office in the literal sense of the term, an area that’s private and free of distractions – and still within range of your Wi-Fi router – is best. If there’s a door you can close to shut out distractions, better still. Pay attention to what you’ll be sitting on and using as a desk, also. Office furniture is designed to be used all day, but your dining room chair and your back may not get along all that well.

Dress for success. Theoretically, you could work all day in your pajamas if you don’t have any videoconferencing responsibilities. But studies show we do better work when we’re dressed for the work we do. Prepare yourself as though you’re going to the office.

Discipline is key. There are more distractions at home, especially if the kids are around, as they are for many of us. It takes some discipline to stay on task when Netflix is calling you to the couch, or when it’s a nice day outside. Try to observe the same work routine as you would if you weren’t at home.

Take breaks. Having discipline doesn’t mean chaining yourself to the desk for eight hours. Set alarms to remind you to get up and move around for at least a few minutes every hour. This is especially important at home, where your work setup may not be as ergonomically friendly as the office.

Be a video star. If you are videoconferencing, see the previous tip about how to dress (at least from the waist up). The best spot for this may not be the space where you’re doing most of your work. You want a well-lit area (lit from the front, not from a window behind you … you’ll disappear into the shadows), and a neutral background so as not to distract other participants. Test out your webcam and speakers well before the call, especially the webcam, so you get a good look at how others will see you and can make adjustments if necessary. And again, if you can be away from kids, dogs and outside noises, your meeting will go more smoothly. Know where the ‘mute’ button is on the software and use it as needed if things get noisy on your end.

Finally, relax. We’ve just undergone a seismic change in the numbers of people working from home, and everyone understands that many of us are new at it. People won’t judge you too harshly if a dog barks or if your child goes running through the background on your video call.

Questions about getting set up at home? Contact Douron.

Libraries in the Mall?

If there’s one overall trend in education over the past decade, it’s the blurring of the lines that used to define a learning space. As noted here previously, the traditional desks-facing-front classroom has given way to flexible spaces that better support different types of learning. Some schools are doubling as community centers, further integrating the classroom with its surroundings. And now, the next time you go to the mall you just might find a library there.

It’s no secret that indoor malls have struggled with vacancy rates as internet shopping and avenue-style retail venues have risen in popularity. Now at least 20 of them nationwide have introduced library branches, including one in Annapolis, MD, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.

The experiment seems to be successful in both directions, attracting both shoppers who might not otherwise go to a library, and library patrons who otherwise might not visit the mall. That means more foot traffic for other mall tenants, for one thing.

The effort seems to resonate especially with immigrant populations, who might not otherwise be familiar with library systems and procedures. Many of the mall branches take great pains to provide multi-lingual offerings.

Typically, these mall branches differ from a traditional library branch in a few significant ways: they tend to be smaller due to space constraints. The focus is much more on activities and programs like group readings and story time for kids. That means you’ll typically find far fewer books than in a regular branch. In other words, more educational space and less shelving.

Patrons don’t seem to mind, though, as the branches provide plenty of educational activities for kids and other non-shoppers to enjoy instead of killing time on a bench. At the Annapolis location, users can even borrow laptop computers.

Things have gone so well in Annapolis that the county is planning and budgeting to make the location permanent, and to quadruple its size.

Want to know more about educational spaces? Contact the experts at Douron.

Douron CO-VID Update

Clients and Staff,

The core of our business has always been the people we serve and the mutual relationships we enjoy. Therefore, our foremost concern is the health and safety of everyone.

We are committed to continuing operations and want to assure you that while many of our employees are not physically in the office, you would never know it. Over the past few years, we have adopted and implemented remote work policies with our staff. From soft-phone applications and cloud-hosted email, we have spent the past several years building an infrastructure which truly allows our office staff to work seamlessly from anywhere they can connect to the internet. We use video conferencing, screen sharing, and various other tools to effectively work in teams whether we can sit together or not. We do not expect to experience any disruptions to our services.

Our intention is to continue providing excellent, quality service to all of our devoted clients. As government mandates are released, we will keep you apprised of any changes.

At this time, we expect to be able to receive and deliver all product as previously scheduled. If, for any reason, you are aware of delays or changes to any of your specific projects, timely notification would be greatly appreciated.

We thank you for your continued partnership. We wish safety and wellness for you and yours. Don’t hesitate to call with any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,
Ronald Hux,
President & Owner