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Welcome to Louis Wagner’s home office. Photo provided by Louis Wagner 

Louis William Wagner Ley, managing partner at Yuzer Group, a marketing and communications advisory firm, shared his home workspace with Delano earlier this week.

AG: Prior to the covid-19 restrictions, did you already telecommute and, if so, how often?

LW: Yes, I did already telecommute. Even though we have both an office in Zurich and Luxembourg City, it depends on clients and projects if we work from home, from the office or directly at the client’s premises. As consultants spread over two countries, telecommuting is part of our daily work.

What do you like about your telecommuting workspace?

I like the flexibility of setting up at home, put some music and dive into strategies for our clients while having a good coffee. Two big screens are a must since I need to handle a lot of different programs and news at the same time while always keeping an eye on financial markets. Being very close to nature, I use the lunchbreak to go for a run.

Louis Wagner uses two large computer monitors at his home office. Photo provided by Louis Wagner
Louis Wagner uses two large computer monitors at his home office. Photo provided by Louis Wagner

How do you make telecommuting work for you?

There are a few fundamental rules that you should stick to: getting up at the regular time, dress up (don’t underestimate the effect on your productivity), and set a clear schedule for the day without forgetting to put in some short breaks. Most of the time I take one of them to have a call with friends or family in order to catch up.

Have you developed any new habits or routines?

I would say that I have reinforced one main habit: Checking the news every hour and listening to news radio such as FranceInfo or Bloomberg.

Now that you’ve been working from home for a while, what has surprised you most about teleworking?

Since I have been working from home, at least partly, already before, I did not have any major surprises. Although this was not a surprise, I am happy to see how good I get along with my girlfriend even when we are both working from home.

How have you been spending your free time?

Besides sports (running and cross-fit at home), I have started an online personal development programme at George Washington University. Being very interesting and challenging at the same time, I would encourage everyone to use this time to engage in continuous education.

Have you started (or restarted) any new hobbies?

I restarted cross-fit at home, be it over lunch or in the evening in order to keep fit.

Have you finally read a book that you wanted to start for a long time, but never did, like “War and Peace”?

I did not read more books than usual until now, but I have been reading a lot of scientific and business research articles that help me to better understand the fundamentals of our clients’ industries.

After the covid-19 restrictions are lifted, do you plan to keep telecommuting sometimes?

Yes, I do. Coming back to normal I will probably make less use of the home office, but it will for sure be a part.