5 Tips for Work/Life Balance When Working from Home
December 1, 2020
For many people, remote work (or working from home) has been a way of life for years or even decades. Others, however, have found themselves thrown into working remotely as a necessary factor of living in a post-COVID society. And while many wish things would “return to normal,” there’s no getting around the fact that working from home is part of the new normal that we all must get used to.
One of the most difficult aspects of working from home is managing a balance between your work life and your personal life. After all, it can get rather confusing when you’re working and eating dinner at the same table. Fortunately, there are a number of things that you can do in order to ensure that you’re striking the right amount of balance each and every day.
Not sure where to start? Here are five essential tips for maintaining balance when working from home.
1. Build a Morning Routine
It’s widely understood that the most successful and prolific artists, theologians and business executives make the very most out of their mornings. The morning is likely the only time of the day that you truly have to yourself, before phone calls and emails start coming in at a ferocious pace. Strive to wake up between 5-6 am each morning, and spend the first hour journaling, meditating or getting in a quick workout.
2. “Time-block” Your Days
When it comes to making sure you’re getting the right things done throughout the day, there’s no better route to success than honing a fine-tuned schedule for each day at hand. This is where the process of “time-blocking” comes in. By blocking out sections of your calendar devoted to specific tasks or necessary activities, you can follow the map you’ve created through to the end of the day, with guaranteed satisfaction as an added bonus.
3. Differentiate Your Work and Personal Hours
When working from home, it can be tempting to log hours at odd times, such as late at night or before dawn. If you’re working past the normal 9-5 cadence, however, you’re effectively working all the time, which is simply not sustainable for most people. Set a start and stop time for work-related tasks each day, and hold yourself to it by scheduling personal events in the after work hours to pull you away from your desk.
4. Stay Connected and Communicative
For those who are used to going into the office each day of the workweek, working from home can feel like an isolating experience; it doesn’t have to be. Email, cell phones, texting and online messaging all make it incredibly fast and easy to stay in touch throughout the day, and when you’re not getting the face-to-face you’re used to, it’s even more important to remain in constant communication with your team via the technology we carry around with us in our pockets.
5. Create a Dedicated Workspace
It’s tempting to just toss a laptop on your kitchen table and call it a day, but this can affect both your work and your personal life if it becomes a habit. By creating a dedicated workspace in which to perform your work, you will inevitably end up with the right amount of distance between the two lives you’re balancing.
So don’t just assume that working from home has to be an impossible challenge. By breaking things down and focusing on the basics, you can create a comfortable routine with balance being the primary focus.
For many people, remote work (or working from home) has been a way of life for years or even decades. Others, however, have found themselves thrown into working remotely as a necessary factor of living in a post-COVID society. And while many wish things would “return to normal,” there’s no getting around the fact that working from home is part of the new normal that we all must get used to.
One of the most difficult aspects of working from home is managing a balance between your work life and your personal life. After all, it can get rather confusing when you’re working and eating dinner at the same table. Fortunately, there are a number of things that you can do in order to ensure that you’re striking the right amount of balance each and every day.
Not sure where to start? Here are five essential tips for maintaining balance when working from home.
1. Build a Morning Routine
It’s widely understood that the most successful and prolific artists, theologians and business executives make the very most out of their mornings. The morning is likely the only time of the day that you truly have to yourself, before phone calls and emails start coming in at a ferocious pace. Strive to wake up between 5-6 am each morning, and spend the first hour journaling, meditating or getting in a quick workout.
2. “Time-block” Your Days
When it comes to making sure you’re getting the right things done throughout the day, there’s no better route to success than honing a fine-tuned schedule for each day at hand. This is where the process of “time-blocking” comes in. By blocking out sections of your calendar devoted to specific tasks or necessary activities, you can follow the map you’ve created through to the end of the day, with guaranteed satisfaction as an added bonus.
3. Differentiate Your Work and Personal Hours
When working from home, it can be tempting to log hours at odd times, such as late at night or before dawn. If you’re working past the normal 9-5 cadence, however, you’re effectively working all the time, which is simply not sustainable for most people. Set a start and stop time for work-related tasks each day, and hold yourself to it by scheduling personal events in the after work hours to pull you away from your desk.
4. Stay Connected and Communicative
For those who are used to going into the office each day of the workweek, working from home can feel like an isolating experience; it doesn’t have to be. Email, cell phones, texting and online messaging all make it incredibly fast and easy to stay in touch throughout the day, and when you’re not getting the face-to-face you’re used to, it’s even more important to remain in constant communication with your team via the technology we carry around with us in our pockets.
5. Create a Dedicated Workspace
It’s tempting to just toss a laptop on your kitchen table and call it a day, but this can affect both your work and your personal life if it becomes a habit. By creating a dedicated workspace in which to perform your work, you will inevitably end up with the right amount of distance between the two lives you’re balancing.
So don’t just assume that working from home has to be an impossible challenge. By breaking things down and focusing on the basics, you can create a comfortable routine with balance being the primary focus.
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