It’s been three months since we switched to remote work. Over this period of time, Mytonians from different cities and countries have discovered the benefits of working remotely, and how to handle the few negative aspects with a good sense of humor. Let’s find out what helped them adapt to working from home. Here are some tips from our team you might find helpful :)

A comfy workspace = productivity

What's the best way to increase productivity and be more efficient when working remotely? Our Mytonians believe the key is to set up a comfortable and functional workspace. While working remotely, our team brought their work machines home and also set up “offices” to suit them.

Alexander, our sound design lead, worked remotely even before the quarantine and has a real recording studio at home.

“I made a small office for myself—a comfortable room where I could create music and sound effects on the computer, plus do audio recording. In order to eliminate external sources of noise, and to avoid disturbing my neighbors, I glued dense acoustic foam all over the walls.”

Rodrigo, a 2D artist, is also a long-distance Mytonian. He set up a comfortable workspace with minimum distractions.

Rodrigo's tip: “It is good to work in a clean and planned-out environment. Be smart and keep everything you need at hand, so you will be able to keep working without any other distractions.”

Another work tip from Jimmy, a 3D artist, may also prove useful.

“Find a way to elevate your monitor so that it is at eye level. This helps with your posture.”

Adam, a C++ engineer, said he finds it very comfortable to work from home thanks to a well-organized workspace.

“I believe I've been just as productive at home as I've been at the office. Being in my own workspace really helps me stay focused on my work. I used to rely on headphones to reduce noise and get into the "zone" but I've become less dependent on them.”

He also shared a tip that you should separate your working and gaming devices for better focus.

“Have separate computers/rooms for work and play (make sure the play computer is off so it's not a distraction).”

Planning and state of mind are the keys to being efficient

Planning and time management help Mytonians correctly plan out tasks and be efficient. For example, Shelton, a software engineer, writes a daily to-do list that helps him complete everything he has planned in time.

“I write a to-do list for the day and put some things I know how to do at the top of the list so I can power through them quickly and allow more time for harder tasks. I edit this list based on a call I make to another team member working on the same task, so we are on the same page and can share the load. I try to do tasks that don't require much brain power and are tedious straight after lunch, which is the time I struggle to think the most.”

Sergey, a game designer, finds it helpful to keep a work activity diary. As for productivity, he says nothing has really changed.

“It’s very helpful to keep a work activity diary. And I can peacefully think out loud—sometimes it helps to thoroughly think tasks out. All in all, everything is pretty much the same as in the office: I want to be helpful, I want to invent, and create something cool.”

Kseniya, a 2D artist, said that order and workouts make her workday more productive.

“To stay productive throughout the day, I try to do small workouts, keep my desk and apartment in order, write down ideas, and draw in a sketchbook.”

Liubov, an HR specialist, shared her tip on how to get yourself in the right mindset to work from home.

“A life hack that helped me in the adaptation period is to dress in the morning as if I was going to the office. During the first few days, this helped me draw a clear line between working and non-working hours.”

My home, my atmosphere

Mytonians create a pleasant atmosphere that’s conducive to working from home. For example, they turn on music they like and find inspiring. Meijin, a UI/UX designer, shared that she loves to turn on heavy music to recharge her batteries.

“In office, I will keep my music volume at the lowest setting because my colleagues can hear it, even with my earpiece on. At home, I can blast my music to maximum! I listen to heavy music to keep me pumped up! Maximum Motivation!”

Jimmy also loves music, and prefers lo-fi or lounge.

“I find that music with no voices helps me concentrate better. Once in a while, I will also listen to enrichment talks or tech updates.”

He also shared a useful tip that if your eyes get tired, you can try putting more plants in your workspace.

“From time to time, have a break from the screen and look at something far away. Add some greenery so your eyes can relax.”

Margarita, a 2D artist, said she loves working from home where the atmosphere is tranquil.

“I’m glad you can create any atmosphere to work in through lighting, music, and scents.”

25-hour days

Many of us think the major plus of working from home is that you don’t have to spend time commuting to the office and back. For example, you can spend this time in the morning working out or reading a book.

“In fact, it’s like a 25th hour of the day, and I gladly spend it on self-education. Thankfully, there are now a lot of free courses on all kinds of topics,” Liubov shares.

Rau, a creative manager, also says it saves a lot of time, and provides some interesting statistics.

“For me the benefits of remote work are that you don’t spend 2-3 hours daily commuting (it basically adds 10 hours to your life per week, 40 hours per month, 480 hours per year).”

Meijin says she dedicates what was previously commute time to something useful.

“I do not have to travel to work anymore, and this extra time is used to improve my lifestyle! I exercise regularly, get more rest, clean my home, and eat a hot breakfast before work!”

Time for hobbies and working out

During quarantine, many of us have more time for home workouts and hobbies. For example, Meijin collects plushies. She makes some toys herself in her free time, and recently donated some of her plushies.

Our business development director Diana shares an excellent hack to get motivated to work out at home. When she wakes up, she puts on her tracksuit and does her training program during breaks throughout the day and after work. The thing is that once you're already wearing your workout clothes, it’s easier to switch from work to workouts. Diana believes working out half an hour daily is a great way to get energized and keep your body healthy:

“I would advise everyone to include 30 minutes of any exercise in your daily schedule. It can be any physical activity: jumping, jogging in place, skipping, HIIT (check this out on YouTube), free sports applications such as Keep Train (recommended!) or Nike Training. If possible, you can purchase a treadmill or a stepper (they don’t take up much space). Any physical activity can help you get energized!”

Here’s another helpful tip from Mytonian Shelton: stretch during breaks and drink more water.

“I start my day with exercises before breakfast to get the blood flowing. If I am waiting for a build or a download, I sometimes stand up and do some stretches. Drinking lots of water and stretching can prevent you from feeling tired.”

Family and pets are always there for you

One of the benefits of remote work for Mytonians is spending more time with their families and pets. Margarita says her cat is happy she’s now by her side almost all the time.

“This is my cat Inola, my little Ragdoll guardian. Now she’s with me all the time, supporting me every day while I work.”

Liubov also notices she now has more time to spend with her family, and it makes her happy:

“The biggest benefit is, of course, spending more time with your family. In order to stay efficient with my kids around, I try to categorize my tasks: if I'm doing something that requires attention and concentration, I give them various developmental tasks, or allow them to watch TV or play nearby.”

Rau shares a touching story about his mother’s care:

“After a call, I went to pour myself some tea and found a plate of treats on the table. It turns out my mom (she lives across the road) came in, heard that I was in a meeting, quietly put the treats on the table, and left. Since then, I call her visits ‘contactless delivery’.”

We hope our Mytonians’ tips and hacks will come in handy. Our remote work experience has shown that our team can work as smoothly and productively as they do from the office. Our recruiting managers have quickly adjusted to the remote recruitment format, and our team keeps growing just as actively—there are more than 900 Mytonians now!

When the quarantine is over, our team will have the choice of whether to work from home or in the office. We’ll tell you more about this in our future posts :)

Meanwhile, take a look at some Mytonians’ home workspaces :) As you may have noticed, our pets provide lots of moral support and various mementos inspire us. All the workspaces look so cozy and beautiful, don’t they?

Would you like to join our team and create games remotely from anywhere in the world? Send your resume right from the vacancy you're interested in: https://mytona.com/career

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