How to Unwind When You Work From Home
Working from home is an adjustment. I’ve been doing it for years but even now I find myself sorting out the balance. I think one of the most difficult things is not having that commute time to decompress from the day. The time where you would be putting the day to bed so to speak and moving on to the next part of your day, which, most likely, is enjoying your time relaxing at home. Working from home, especially during a pandemic, you just barely get to….leave. It’s all too easy to get into this cycle where everything just meshes together.
Over the past few months I’ve really found myself throwing more into work because let’s face it, what other things did I really have to do? I shortly began to realize what a problem this was and had to remedy it. There is a real difference between being productive and just being busy for the sake of being busy. The more I take on, the more burnt out I feel and, at a certain point, home just doesn’t feel like home. So rather than people-pleasing and being at everyone’s beck and call, I put restrictions on my day just as I would otherwise. Here are 4 things I do that really help define work versus home.
Have a Workspace
I’m guilty of working on my bed…a lot. While it might be comfortable, it leads to confusion for the body. Your body and mind should associate your bed with rest, relaxation, and sleep. Working from bed means you bring stressors into that space which can make you feel extra stressed out when it is in fact time to sleep. Set up a workspace away from places you like to relax. It can increase your productivity by lowering the distractions and it won’t cause those crossed wires when it comes time for bed.
Enforce a Start and Cut Off Time
This was a game-changer for me. Observing “work time” was a huge challenge. It’s really easy to just go, go, go especially when on a creative streak. Unfortunately, it creates an imbalance, and people begin to believe they are entitled to your time whenever they want. They assume you’ll be answering emails and text messages from the second you wake up to the time you rest your head on the pillow. Weekends no longer become your time to yourself. Set realistic expectations for when your day will begin, end, and how much work will be finished within that time. They can change by the day. Mine sure do. But you must have them. Utilize a wrap-up routine so you can begin to shift into the out of office mode when your cut out time officially starts.
Listen to Music
Listening to music while working is nothing new. I always have some kind of tunes playing depending on the project I’m working on. But when I say listen to music, I mean the best mood-boosting music you have. Turn it on at the end of the day and shake it off. It will change the mood of your environment, and make it easier to enjoy the rest of your evening without worrying about the stress of work. If you’ve had a bad day, it just has the ability to flip it and reverse it. Listening to music kinda has the same idea hitting up Happy Hour after work would..just vibes.
Cook a Meal
This one might not be for everyone so enjoy take out if you wish. But if you’re like me, taking time to focus on something like cooking is not only fun but can relieve stress. Putting all my energy and focus into creating something yummy takes away all the nonsense I might have had to deal with over the last however many hours. Plus it really gives me something to look forward to when everything feels like a chaotic dumpster fire. Not every night has to be some complex 4-course meal, it just has to be something enjoyable. I like to listen to music while I cook (usually) to create ambiance and my own little happy place. But having a quick bite and binge-watching television works fine too!