How do you manage your work-life balance?

2020 brought an unpleasant surprise for all of us: Covid-19. Because of this pandemic, everyone and everything had to make reforms to protect ourselves and our families. One significant change that this Covid-era brought was ‘Work-from-home.’

There is a famous saying that goes, “never bring work to your dinner table.” This saying means that you shouldn’t bring your office’s stress to your home as that time is intended for you to rest. But during this Covid-era, our houses became our workplace, and pressure became constant in our lives. Rarely anyone had experienced this kind of stress before. It is because we had to manage our professional life stressors and our familial life stressors all simultaneously. Initially, it was challenging to do that, but now, as we have gotten used to the idea of work-from-home, we have devised some tricks to maintain a healthy life-work balance.

It is essential to have an excellent work-life balance for your sanity. If you have messed-up schedules, it will not only affect you mentally, but it will also affect you physically and emotionally. If you are having trouble maintaining your work-life balance and need some help to get your life back on track, then keep on reading this article.

Table of Contents

Get dressed for your work

It might feel like the clothes you work in don’t matter but believe us, it does. Most people wake up and start working in their PJs because they know no one is seeing them. But taking a shower and getting ready is essential as research has shown that getting dressed can increase your work productivity. It will also help you switch on your ‘work-mode’ and distinguish between your everyday life and work life.

Make a separate workplace for yourself

Working in the office helps you distinguish between your work and your home. But as we are working from home, there is no such distinction, and our daily chores overlap with our daily office work. That is why it is essential to have a separate workspace while doing your office work. It doesn’t have to be a secluded room altogether; it could just be a spot where you sit with your laptop to do your job or any place that feels as separate from the rest of your home.

Time distribution between work and family

The biggest difference between working from home and working in the office is that you are the complete in-charge of your environment. You have full authority over your actions. Here, it becomes essential to recognize when you are wasting your time doing nothing during office hours and giving in extra hours because you feel free. Both of these things are wrong. While the former will make you miss your targets and deadlines, the latter will leave you overworked and overstressed. Therefore, set a schedule. Give only that much time to your work as you used to give while working in the office. Also, take breaks in-between, and your mind relaxed.

Decide ways to transition in and out of work

Earlier, when we used to travel to your office in the morning, we had time to process everything and put ourselves in the mood for work. As we work from home, we just do things one after another, and there is no difference between office work and household work. Hence, you need to have a fixed way of transitioning into your office work and out of your office work. A cup of coffee can also aid in a smooth transition from home-mode to office-mode.

Maintain social-interactions

While we were working in an office, we used to have a lot of social interaction with our colleagues and peers. But now, due to covid, the whole office suddenly started working from home. Thus, we are cutting off many casual social interactions that we used to have throughout the day. This social interaction was helping all of us remain sane while you had a tremendous workload or when you felt overworked. Therefore, we recommend everyone take a virtual video coffee break with their colleagues when they can as this will feel a lot more like their office, and talking to a colleague will induce the feel-good factor.

Continue Reading: Home Office Solutions for Working From Home in 2021

Be relaxed and calm while you are with your family

Children pick up on moods and sense your unhappiness. Whether you have issues maintaining a good family routine or about your missed meals and late bedtimes, children will notice, but if you seem relaxed and calm, they’ll relax as well. So, even if you stay with them for half an hour every day, be sure to calm your nerves. You can take 10 minutes to shower and change before you sit down with the children. It will help you unwind and instantly put you in a better mood.

Try to have a meal with your family

We acknowledge that you might have the same schedule, but to maintain a healthy work-life balance, you must have a meal with your family members. If you get late while working, the chances are that your children have already eaten their food. What you can do in this case is to go to their bedroom and share a light snack and enjoy a conversation with them. Tell them about your day, what all you did, and who all you met, or narrate a story to them. But we still recommend that you enjoy a warm dinner with everyone as it will make you feel happy and connected with your family.

Devote some time to your children daily

You don’t have to give in long hours to stay connected with your family. Thirty minutes daily is also enough. You can do a lot of activities in those 30 minutes like watering the garden with your children, taking a walk with them, or taking the dog around the block. Have a wholesome chat with them while doing these activities, and this will make you all feel content.

Plan something special during the weekends

To maintain a healthy work-life balance, you must break the monotony on the weekends and do something unique. You can plan a movie time, a Lego night, or a computer game night with the family. Whatever you all can enjoy together in virtual escape rooms. Children love to know that there is one night when everything stops and everyone can enjoy and bond together.

Continue Reading: Easy stretches to boost work efficiency in your home office

Hola! These were a few tips and tricks that will help you keep your schedule in check and help you keep your work-life balance in check. Hope these tips help you and your work-from-home phase pass by smoothly.