More and more workers are joining the remote workforce and opting to work from their home office. While working from home has many benefits, it also means there aren’t any occupational safety committees making sure we have ergonomic workstations or an IT department enforcing proper security measures to protect our client’s sensitive information.
This post is all about Work From Home Safety Tips – VA Best Practices
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As Virtual Assistants, it’s our responsibility to make sure we are using best practices to protect our mental health, establish proper workplace safety with an ergonomic workstation, and protect our client’s sensitive information with up-to-date antivirus software, or virtual private network.
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This post shares Work From Home Safety Tips – VA Best Practices
Work From Home Safety Tips for Virtual Assistants
1. Ergonomics
As Virtual Assistants, we are often sitting in the same position for long hours of the day working on our computers. It’s important to have a proper ergonomic workstation to protect our backs, shoulders, and necks from the constant strain of working on our computers.
You’ll want to invest in a comfortable workspace with ergonomic furniture that supports your body in the proper position for long periods of work.
Desk Chair
Your desk chair should support your back in a comfortable upright position that minimizes slouching. It should be adjustable so your feet can be firmly planted on the ground, with your feet, knees, and hips at a 90-degree angle.
Computer Screens
Your computer screens should be mounted on adjustable arms to minimize eye and neck pain. Ideally, your computer screen should be slightly below eye height, so that you don’t need to bend your neck to look down or to look up.
You may also want to invest in a pair of blue light-blocking lenses to wear late at night if you need to work late after the kids go to bed. These prevent blue light from entering your eyes and disrupt natural melatonin production that promotes healthy sleep patterns.
Desk
Investing in a sit-stand desk is a lifesaver for remote workers. It allows you to adjust the desk to different positions during the day, so you aren’t stuck in the same seated position for long hours. You can raise the desk and work standing up, or better yet, many Virtual Assistants have invested in walking pads so they can get their daily steps in while working away on the computer. Multi-tasking at its finest!
Computer Workstation Ergonomics: Self-Assessment Checklist
2. Computer Security Measures
As a Virtual Assistant working from home, it’s your responsibility to take proper security measures to protect your client’s sensitive information. Especially as we use our devices to access a variety of websites containing our client’s personal data like credit cards and banking information.
Virtual Private Network
You may want to invest in a VPN (Virtual Private Network) especially if you plan to work from a virtual cafe or public wifi. A VPN helps protect your client’s information by encrypting the data, hiding your IP address, and routing your information through a secure server.
Read: What is a VPN and what does it do?
Passwords
Handling and managing passwords is a part of everyday life for a Virtual Assistant. Your clients are entrusting you with a lot of personal information in exchange for your help in their businesses. With that comes the responsibility of safely managing their online data. Thankfully, there are a lot of tools that make managing passwords a lot safer than just saving them in Google Docs! Unfortunately, I see this all too often with clients.
You’ll want to use a secure password manager like 1Password. 1Password helps you securely store your client’s information like passwords and credit cards with two-factor authentication. It also helps you share passwords and credentials securely, while also helping you track and address security risks like compromised passwords and the creation of strong passwords.
Malware and Viruses
Working from home also means that we are responsible for investing and maintaining our own electronic devices. My laptop alone is worth its weight in gold since it’s allowed me to earn thousands of dollars working from home.
For that reason alone, it’s important to take care of our devices since we depend on them daily for our livelihood.
You’ll want to invest in Antivirus Software that is appropriate for your type of device. Antivirus Software can help scan, block, and remove any malware that is infecting your device.
Read: How does antivirus software work?
Powering Electronic Devices
Another great idea is to use a surge protector to protect your devices from a potential power surge. Any kind of dip or power surge to your device can result in your device getting fried.
We also usually have multiple devices needing power when working from our home offices, it’s important to use proper electrical outlets and quality power bars to prevent fires from occurring from overdrawn outlets.
3. Home Safety Tips
Finally, you should also evaluate your home and office space for emergency preparedness. As a Virtual Assistant working primarily from home, this means we spend 90% of our time in our homes living and working. If an emergency were to strike, it likely means we would be at home to experience it, and depending on the area you live in, you may experience different types of natural disasters regularly that other people in different parts of the country don’t experience frequently.
Fire
Do you have a fire extinguisher readily available should a fire suddenly break out in your home? Do you have smoke detectors with working batteries installed in your home should a fire break out in a room furthest away from you? When was the last time you tested them?
Carbon Monoxide
Carbon Monoxide is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas produced from incomplete combustion. If you have gas appliances or heat your home with gas, wood, or charcoal, you can be at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. A simple preventative measure is to install a carbon monoxide detector on every level of your home that will alert you if levels get dangerous.
Read: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Event of Emergency
Should a natural disaster strike your home, having a safety plan in place can help minimize the chaos of getting everyone in the household organized and in a safe location. I don’t know about you but I know for myself that when I am afraid, it’s really hard to make logical and safe decisions. Having a safety plan in place before disaster strikes helps minimize the amount of decisions that need to be taken in the event of an emergency. Practicing your safety plan with family members also helps reduce the amount of chaos and panic when disaster strikes.
Working from home has many advantages but it also comes with additional responsibilities, like managing your occupational health and safety as well as protecting your electronic devices from cyber attacks, and keeping your Virtual Assistant client’s personal data safe.
By following some of the steps detailed here, you’ll be able to set your own safety standards ensuring a safe working environment for years to come. A good next step is to implement some of these suggestions one by one so as not to get overwhelmed. Choosing and implementing a few of these suggestions in your work area can dramatically improve your work-from-home safety.
This post was all about Work From Home Safety Tips – VA Best Practices
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