Staying Connected

Are you struggling to adapt to a new routine? It’s hard. Working from home while managing your family is stressful. Worrying about your business can grind your productivity to a halt. It’s easy to feel anxious and to ignore “non-essentials” like staying in touch with family and friends.

Yet, staying connected is more important than ever. According to experts, it’s an antidote to stress. Talking about everyday worries can reduce their impact, both for you and for the people you connect with.

New technology gives us all kinds of ways to stay connected when we can’t be with the people we love. Follow these tips to get started.

1: Stay connected through digital groups

When you can’t share news in person, find a new way to share it.

For example, it’s easy to set up a private Facebook page or group to keep your extended family connected. Think of it as an ongoing family newsletter. Instead of waiting to tell your cousins how things are going, you can tell them directly. If your neighborhood doesn’t have an online group, create one. It’s a new way to connect on neighborhood safety, track down a lost pet, or even catch a package thief.

Not sure what to share? Start with a video. SAFE Solutions security cameras and doorbell cameras can capture everything from a baby’s first steps to a suspicious visitor at your door. You can post any clip directly to your new group using the Alarm.com app.

2: Meet up with friends and family virtually

Instead of postponing meetups and gatherings, take them online.

A group video chat on FaceTime can keep friendships fresh even though you’re in different places. A new Google extension called Netflix party, lets friends and family stream and video-chat through a movie together, with the ability to pause and play for everyone at once.

To make it easy for older adults to reach you, gift them a WellCam for their home! It’s a video camera with two-way voice and a call-out button for connecting directly with no dialing required. Here’s how one family uses it.

3: Schedule time for the people you love

When you work from home, a routine of doing your work and then going offline makes it easy to postpone the effort of staying connected. If this sounds like you, schedule time to connect with someone every day as if it were a work meeting.

If your kids are home, schedule breaks and backyard PE lessons with them. Even a ten-minute game of catch can break up a mundane day and help your kids feel connected and reassured. For evenings, schedule movie nights or game nights that you can all look forward to.

Missing your workmates? Schedule a morning coffee break to boost camaraderie, decompress, and talk about non-work-related things.

4: Concerned about safety? Look to security

It’s important to stay connected on safety and wellbeing, especially with older adults or family members who might not speak up about a problem.

For older adults, consider our Wellness line. Wellness connects their home to yours via smart home security technology, with smartphone alerts to let you know about important activity.

You can get an alert if a parent doesn’t open their medication box in the morning, or if a contact sensor picks up unexpected activity at night. Wellness can even alert you to sublte activity changes that could indicate an emerging quality-of-life issue, enabling you to schedule a doctors’ visit before an emergency occurs.

Interested? Connect with us today!https://safesolutions.us/