EDITION 817
11 MAY 2020

As another week of working from home slips by, here are 10 things which caught my attention and may have escaped yours. This newsletter is sent to 50,000+ subscribers each Monday at 10am. Please share on social media and forward to your colleagues and friends so they can subscribe, learn and engage. I'd be very grateful if you did.

1. How to fight video conference fatigue. If you’re finding you’re more exhausted after a day working from home than you used to be, you’re not alone. Video conference fatigue is a result of the fact that video calls are more draining than face-to-face meetings. We tend to focus more intently and feel that we have to stare at the screen constantly to signal that we’re paying attention. Here are four tips for making video calls less tiring. READ MORE >>

2. Stay alert in England but stay at home elsewhere. Prime minister Boris Johnson “actively encouraged” Britons to return to work as he outlined a three-step plan to slowly ease the social distancing measures that have halted much of the economy. Seven weeks after placing the nation under lockdown, Johnson said anyone who cannot work from home should now go to work. From Wednesday, people can go outside for unlimited exercise and meet with one friend or relatively in an open space. A phased reopening of non-essential shops will commence next month, alongside primary schools. BBC

3. The Queen's VE Day message: 'Never give up, never despair'. In case you missed it, the Queen gave a moving televised address to the nation to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day on Friday, in which she praised Britain's lockdown spirit which has filled empty streets with "love". She thanked the wartime generation and said they would have admired "what we are willing to do to protect and support one another" during the coronavirus pandemic. Editor

4. Chancellor will extend reduced furlough scheme. Nearly a quarter of employees in Britain are now on furlough, with the Government effectively paying their wages, new figures from HMRC have revealed. In total, 6.3 million workers at 800,000 companies have been put on the job retention scheme. The UK government will continue bankrolling wages until the end of September at a reduced rate of 60%, Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to announce reforms this week to the coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, which is costing an estimated £16bn a month. The Daily Telegraph

5. Reinventing yourself during a crisis. Even during a pandemic, you don't have to put your career transitions on hold. Here’s some ideas if you're trying to make a work-related pivot in uncertain times: [1] Imagine a range of possibilities for your future self; [2] Embrace the feeling of being in-between and use the time to process your emotions; [3] Invest time in side projects; [4] Connect with those you haven't spoken to for three years or more; [5] Talk to others, like a mentor or others going similar transitions. Editor

6. The key to staying optimistic. Maintaining hope can serve as a powerful antidote to stress during hard times. In addition to showing compassion to ourselves and others and paying attention to everyday activities we enjoy, we must create space for our negative thoughts to fully embrace optimism. Optimism is not about putting our heads in the sand, but finding a way to sit with both the good and the bad. Editor

7. Is the WFH honeymoon over? Video conference fatigue, homeschooling young children and working at a makeshift home office are factors combining to make workers yearn for the office, say workplace experts. Despite some positive signs remote working led to greater productivity and more family time, the increasingly blurred lines between work and leisure, restrictions of choice and physical disconnection means employees put in longer hours, are less productive and crave interactions with colleagues. Some solutions? Exercise regularly, try to set work-life boundaries and reward yourself with something guilt-free each day. BBC

8. Tourism faces worst crisis ever. International tourism faces its worst crisis since records began, with up to 1.1 billion fewer people taking trips globally in 2020. A World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) report shows the coronavirus pandemic has caused a 22% fall in global international tourist arrivals during the first quarter of 2020, with Asia and the Pacific the hardest hit with a 35% fall, and Europe 19% down from 2019. Globally, the crisis threatens the livelihood of up to 120 million people who rely on tourism for work – and millions more indirectly. The Guardian

9. Good news as millions kick the habit. The corona-crisis appears to have encouraged millions of people to cut down on their smoking, or give up entirely. According to a YouGov survey, 2% of UK smokers have quit, because they’re worried their habit makes them more vulnerable to Covid-19; a further 8% say they are trying to give up, and 36% say they have cut down. Extrapolating the findings suggests more than 850,000 people have given up smoking, or are trying to, and 2.4 million are smoking less. Daily Mail

10. The bottom line. The National Lottery’s Heritage Fund is to make 600m available to charities and organisations affected by closures amid the pandemic. This includes £50m to organisations the heritage fund has supported in the past, enabling 1,000 emergency grants of £50,000 each to be issued. The Times