Before the pandemic, Lilian Chan had already opted for that WFH life, taking that leap to strike it out on her own and resigning from her full-time job in 2019. “My official last day was on 14th February 2020, (but before that) I worked in an office for six years,” she said. These days, the home décor blogger, content creator, trainer and freelance writer is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She primarily writes at That Isle Life featuring beautiful homes tours, styling and design tips and snippets of her life with her husband and shih tzu.
She tells us more about sharing her home office set up with her husband, where she gets her best ideas and a candle she loves which sets a perfectly cozy ambiance to work in.
On sharing her home office space with her husband
Lilian may have gotten a head start in setting up her home office, so work for her during the pandemic didn’t require anything else, except a light spruce and redecoration. “It was an instant mood lifter!” she shared.
But that also meant a shift for her husband to join her in her space when lockdown started. “The first thing we purchased were our IKEA desks. I still need an ergonomic chair, but I’ve been putting it off since I’m not always at my desk.”
“We have two desks right next to each other. He’s always in meetings, which can be very distracting, but I’ve gotten used to it now and know how to tune him out. If we are both in meetings, he usually moves his WFH setup to the dining room, and I get the home office to myself!”
On creating the right working environment
“I need a large desk to accommodate my laptop, camera, notebooks, water bottle, etc. I also love surrounding myself with pretty things, so my desk decor rotates whenever I need inspiration. I also dedicated an entire room for my home office because I wanted to have that physical separation between work and home life.”
The 5 things Lilian can’t work without
“My MacBook, phone, Notes app, water bottle and a nice candle.”
What is your daily work schedule like?
“Everyday is very different – that’s what I love most about what I do! I try to dedicate specific days in the week to blogging/content creation and training/writing for clients. I’m either glued to my desk typing away or somewhere around the house doing a project and photographing/filming it. When I’m training, I’m on Zoom 6 hours a day.”
“I’m a morning person, so I feel most productive before noon. I focus better when I’m working in my home office. Although – funny story – I get some of my best ideas in the shower!”
Do you have any rituals to kickstart your work day?
“The first thing I do is to check my to-do list on my phone. I also fill up a large water bottle (if I don’t do this before I start my work day, I get so focused and I forget to drink water!) and clean my laptop (I love working on a freshly cleaned laptop).”
What about when you have to clock off?
“I review my to-do list (I’m obsessed with lists) and check off everything I’ve completed. If I don’t manage to get something done, I shift it according to my schedule. I also try to go for a walk after work to relax my eyes since my screen time is ridiculous.”
Mabel Ho is a writer and editor. She loves pop culture criticism and podcasts, often listening to them at 1.5x speed like a monster. Follow her at @lynnegweeny