Tips for How to Stay Well and Productive during the Corona Virus (COVID-19) Outbreak

6 min readMar 8, 2020

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Disruptions have become inevitable in the past couple of weeks because of COVID-19 in Seattle, and slowly nearly everywhere in the United States. Many people are worried, many are continuing business as usual, and many are simply confused — what does this mean to me, personally? How risky is this virus? What adjustments do I need to make to my life? In light of this historical event, I wanted to record my personal experience and share some of the things I do to make my life as uninterrupted as possible.

A word of caution before you read further into the post: I am not a medical professional, and the content shouldn’t be taken as medical advice in any way. CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR if you have any health concerns.

👩‍💻 Work

I work at the Amazon Seattle headquarters. Here is a series of events happened in only a week that completely changed our work life.

Saturday, Feb 29

The first COVID-19 death in the United States happened in King County. All of a sudden it changed the tones of the discussion. Before that, everyone I talked to Seattle only knew about the virus and was aware of the fact that it was spreading in Asia. Rarely did people know how much impact it had on people’s everyday lives in China, both the sick and the well. Very few people bothered to check facts because, hey, it’s just an Asia virus, right? The other side of the globe will be totally fine!

Monday, March 2

After a weekend full of news and (unfortunate) events, most people I know at Amazon still showed up to work. We got an email stating that, at this time, only stay home if you’re sick.

Tuesday, March 3

With the number of cases climbing in Seattle, the wave of panic became real. Many people were sending emails to their HR contacts to evaluate the possibilities of working from home. Because schools were starting to close, many parents needed to work from home to watch their kids.

Wednesday, March 4

It finally dawned on us that there was one confirmed case in one of the headquarter buildings. Because of how crowded the area is, Amazon immediately changed the guideline to “work with your manager for work-from-home arrangements”.

Thursday, March 5

Most of my teammates chose to work from home. By the end of the day, we got an email that officially stated: “Amazon is requesting that all Seattle and Bellevue employees who can work from home do work from home.”

Friday, March 6

My team started a daily video call standup at noon. During the call, our manager said, “We’re fortunate to be in a position where it’s possible to work from home.” It’s true. Tech workers are extremely fortunate. With laptops and Internet connections, we have the option and can do so from anywhere. However, the impact on other types of jobs, for example, service workers, is going to be devastating.

Work From Home

I have never worked from home for such an extended period. I see it as an opportunity to experience it and maybe find out if I like it! So far I have to say that I think my productivity is actually boosted. As a design technologist, I value deep focus. I enjoy having quiet, alone time to think through a design problem and crank out prototypes. As much as I appreciate the social vibe in my office, the endless distractions, meetings that take an hour here and there, kitchen conversations, chit-chats about how you spend your weekends, are all interruptions to my flow state.

Since I started working at home, I’ve noticed that people schedule fewer meetings, too. I think it’s because we don’t want to deal with the awkwardness of phone conversations. This has resulted in a reduced number of meetings and long hours of focus time. The real question is: if we can still produce valuable work with fewer meetings, does it mean some meetings are simply unnecessary and can be eliminated altogether?

Tips for WFH

Go to bed and wake up at a consistent schedule. This routine will help me feel less interrupted, both physically and mentally.
Set up your workspace. This is soooooooo worth it! Having a comfortable, dedicated workspace that’s not your bedroom or couch, will make you feel so much more motivated. Having one or two monitors is important, too. Here is what my workspace looks like:

Set deadlines for everything. One of the biggest problems associated with WFH is procrastination. Even if you are not seeing your manager every day, you still need to deliver. Make sure you set deadlines for yourself and communicate with your managers often about what you’re working on.

🍲 Eat

If you work from home too, I am guessing one of the questions you have, every day, consistently, is, what should I eat? Do I snack all day, or have regular meals? Do I order takeouts or stock up my pantry? This is a personal choice, but during this COVID-19 outbreak, my goal is to socially isolate as much as possible and at the same time make sure my immune system can defend me from the viruses.

I have regular meals, 3 times a day. This ensures that I take time to cook fresh meals that I actually enjoy. Cooking is also my chance to take a break from sitting at my desk. After all, my commute has become bedroom -> study -> kitchen -> study. Now that I am avoiding almost all social events, I really don’t move around that much. Getting up to cook has become one of my most important daily activities.

Another question people might have, is how do I get groceries if I want to avoid crowded places? The answer is, (shameless plug alert), Amazon! Have you heard of Amazon Fresh? It’s now free delivery with your Prime membership. One of my favorite things in the morning is to see my fresh groceries delivered to my doorstep and ready to be prepped into a delicious breakfast, like this:

Breakfast: Matcha Latte, Bagel w/ Mixed Berries, Chicken Maple Sausage, Fried Egg

If you are like me, who likes to stock up just in case something happens, here is a list of items I personally enjoy. Stocking up for emergencies doesn’t mean you have to settle for junk foods.

🤸‍♀️ Exercise

I’ve made the hard decision to avoid going to the gym during this time. It doesn’t mean I am going to be a couch potato. I highly recommend the HIIT workout. It’s a perfect at-home workout because it requires no equipment, and can get your heart rate high in 10 minutes. Before I made this decision, I did a lot of research on workout apps and see which one works the best and costs the least. I landed on FitOn. So far I really love it. Great UI/UX design, and free membership gives you access to all the workouts! Everything! It’s an amazing deal comparing to other apps.

Hopefully, you find some tips helpful in this post! Thanks for reading and please stay safe and well wherever you are. 🧘🧘‍♂️