When it came to having to work from home during this pandemic, I’m sure a lot of you were pretty excited, to say the least.
When you think about working from home you think about creating a safe space for yourself to feel empowered and do the best work you possibly can.
That’s not to say that this is how it turns out though.
Creating a healthy work-life balance when they are both in the same location can create its own peaks and troughs. So, I want to share some steps to help you maximise the time you spend working from home.
For a lot of people, working from home can be a tricky balance, and some things are unavoidable. So. I don’t want to suggest having a separate work-space or working alone, as this isn’t possible for a lot of you. These are tips and steps that anyone can take, in any environment.
Before I start with the steps and before you start taking these steps, they should be split into 3 different parts. These are mental, physical and emotional.
When I talk about the physical part of working from home I mean the actions that you take to make this experience a success.
Work from home needs routine!
The first step can seem like an obvious one but I’m sure a lot of you consider this to be a good idea but don’t actualise it, especially when you’re nestled in your comfy bed without having to get up for a commute!
Just because you are at home, that doesn’t mean that a routine shouldn’t start before your work day. Set your alarm for a decent hour and start you day at the same time, preparing yourself in the same way. This can be making your first coffee at the same time, washing off your nights sleep with a hot shower and getting dressed (not just from the waist up!)
Fuel your day the right way!
A healthy breakfast really is the best start to the day. And, now you don’t even have the excuse of having to rush out the door and buy a station croissant on the way to the office.
Make sure you’re giving yourself the best chance for a productive day with a balanced and healthy breakfast.
Then, throughout the day, stock up on snacks that will preferably give you that slower energy release between meals; rather than a chocolate that can give you a big boost, but just as steep a crash at the end of it.
After these physical steps, consider your mental wellbeing:
One thing at a time
What can be tempting is catching up with your Netflix show whilst writing out that email or presentation.
As well as mixing hobbies and work, avoid trying to cook, clean or do other things whilst you’re ‘working’. This can turn out as more of procrastination than a productive work-life balance.
One of these things will always end up lacking, and you will not get the fulfillment that you would for doing each separately. When you try to multitask like this too, you can mentally burn out and find that you don’t have the energy to do much else.
In the same way that you want to give yourself steady, slow-release fuel, you want to pace yourself with your workload too.
When you have conquered your mental capabilities of working from home, consider the emotional implications and what you can do about it.
Time
Just like you should set a time to start work at the same time each day – remember to set a time to clock-out too.
Working from home doesn’t mean just focusing on what you are doing during your set work-hours, it also means making sure that you have made time to close the laptop, wind down and spend time with others outside of work
This is about learning what it is you need to do to feel physically, mentally and emotionally safe. To then help you to stay on point, in control and feel empowered to work from home effectively.
Have a good day at work
