With many people working from home now in Vancouver, you might be struggling to form a good work-life balance. It can be tough- especially when it feels like you are constantly on-call or available now. After all, all the technology you need is right at home, but when can you “clock out”?
For a lot of us, this is our first time working from home. Masterhouse Media put together this guide to help you improve your routine and feel more comfortable in your day to day life. Let’s begin!
Learn to manage new flexibility
Once you start working from home, you suddenly have a lot more flexibility during your day. However, this might make you feel more pressure to work harder. Many people feel like they need to spend more time “logged in” and working at home.
Plus, without others around to remind you to take breaks, you are more likely to skip them or work additional hours without realizing it. Everyone needs breaks and you do not want to lose all of your free time, even if you feel more dependent on technology than before.
What’s work-life balance?
This term refers to how people break up their time between home life and their jobs. When you have a good work-life balance, this means you also have great time managing skills. You get to relax and spend time with your family at home or participate in hobbies- while still completing work obligations. This balance is an ongoing process, as workloads and life-commitments vary month-to-month.
When people work from home for the first time, it feels like this balance is interrupted. Many feel that they have everything they need at home and they don’t need breaks during the day. However, this can be a stressful situation to put yourself in- everyone needs a good work-life balance.
Why is it important?
Not having a balance between your work and daily lives will harm your happiness, which could then negatively impact your health. You could lose the sense of control you have in your life and feel a lot of stress.
Those who have a good balance are happier. This also leads them to be more motivated and productive during their work time. For those working remotely, you want to balance out your day, so you can achieve this.
How you can balance work and life
Finding a good balance for you is all about time management. You will need to learn what tasks to prioritize when and communicate effectively with those around you. We gathered some helpful advice to make balancing your work and home life easier:
Set a schedule
It is important that you set a reasonable schedule and do your best to stick with it. You do not have to be online all of the time either. Being consistent will also let your team know when they can reach you.
Plus, you will be able to plan time for hobbies and spending time with family outside of your working hours. You also can get to bed at the same time each night, which is good for your overall health.
Since you are working remotely, your schedule can change as needed. If you notice people need you to be online at certain times, you can always adjust your schedule here and there to accommodate your team. Still, you will need to remember that you need time to relax too.
Many health specialists agree that having a morning routine is a good idea. It will help you get ready for your day and make you more productive.
Let your team know when you’re online
Next, you will want to use tools that let your team know when you’re online. That way, even those in different time zones know when they can reach out to you.
Slack has availability options that you can set yourself. There are also other methods if your workplace uses different apps. Some people will indicate their availability in Google Calendar.
By making your personal hours public knowledge, you are letting your coworkers know when you can respond to them. This prevents an explosion of emails in the middle of the night when you are trying to rest.
Take breaks
While working from home you still need to take breaks. You do not need to commute or walk into your office, meaning you have more time to do other, more productive things. But, you do not want to spend your entire day working, since this could lead to too much stress.
We recommend that you break up your day. Get away from the computer stretch, play with the pet, eat lunch in front of the TV, or take a walk. It is alright to step away from your computer- think about how many times you got up to wander around the office or complete small errands while there.
Websites by Masterhouse
Masterhouse Media is an innovative digital consulting agency from Vancouver, BC specializing in web development and mobile apps. Masterhouse is best known for launching the popular Internet portal Clubvibes.com in 1999, one of the first social media platforms on the Internet. The company is currently focused on building digital strategies and premium websites for clients. Find out more at masterhouse.net
