Post-covid, remote work is booming. There are plenty of benefits to working from home, from lessening stress to increasing productivity.
The biggest negative about working from home is losing the typical work-life balance. If all work is done at home — how do you know when to stop? In-person work ends when leaving the office, but your home IS the office when working remotely.
Luckily there are ways to balance your newfound work situation with your daily life. We have curated 7 science-backed tips to help create a work-life balance while working remotely.
Try out a fake commute
You might not miss the traffic on your morning commute to the office, but the reality is, that commute helped you have a transition between work and life. When working remotely, you miss out on this gap. Luckily, there are some ways to continue this gap without sitting in 30 minutes of rush hour traffic.
Try going on a walk, reading a chapter of a book, or going to get a morning coffee before starting each workday. This will give you a bit of time between waking up and starting work. It is proven that this “fake commute” will reduce stress and improve creativity in your workday.
Create a routine
Routines will create a comfortable work-life balance when working remotely. Sticking to a schedule, whether it be waking up the same time each day or making your coffee at the same time daily, will help improve your well-being.
Routines will also remind you when it is time to begin and end working and when it is time to begin and end daily life activities.
Stay social
One of the hardest parts of transitioning to working from home is the lack of social interaction with working remotely. There is an easy fix to this! Make sure you are hosting video meetings with your colleagues so there is face-to-face interaction.
Happy hours, meetups, workout classes, and book clubs are other great ways to get out of the house and meet other smiling faces.
Spend time in nature
It is easy to get depressed if you are staying indoors all day, which is why it is important to take nature breaks when working remotely. Go outside and take a walk or simply sit in the sun. You can even take your laptop and work outside. This will help improve both your physical and mental health.
Learn how to say “no”
Saying “no” is hard in work and life alike. Saying “no” to extra projects that you may be asked if you have time for is a great way to keep a work-life balance. Work shouldn’t overtake the rest of your life.
Saying “thanks for the opportunity” and “I don’t have the time” are great ways to politely replace the word “no” and tell your boss that you can’t let this extra project take away from your personal time.
Get regular exercise
Exercise is always important, especially when you are working remotely. Getting regular exercise is proven to reduce stress and anxiety, as well as curb the negative effects of sitting too much.
Consider going on a walk or doing a simple YouTube workout to easily squeeze some exercise into your day.
Ditch multitasking
Multitasking is especially common in remote workers. It is not as productive as it may seem. It is best to participate in “deep work” on one project at a time, as opposed to multitasking on several projects at once.
Deep work involves turning off notifications from other projects and giving your uninterrupted attention to one task at a time.
No matter when or why you began working from home, it is a great opportunity. It is best to protect your home (especially if you are self-employed or a remote worker) with Hippo home insurance to ensure that you are covered in the event of an emergency. Follow all of these tips to make the most out of working remotely.
