How to Work From Home Without Losing Your Mind
This year, Covid-19 plowed into our lives like a gangle of squirrels converging on a field of untouched peanuts. Between terrible wildfires, a global pandemic, mass protests, Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin and the glorious memes of Tiger King, economic crises, awkward conversations with your family about politics, and social distancing; 2020 was one for the record books (and not in a good way).
Whether you like it or not, working from home has become the norm. Thanks Covid…
For many people working from home is the absolute dream. No office politics, no commute, no parking fees, and no bosses leaning over your shoulder micromanaging you at every turn. However, with all the perks associated with working remotely, there are also a lot of downsides. When you’re working from home, it can be difficult to disconnect from your day job. Without our daily commutes, office politics, and happy hours, it’s harder to inject spontaneity and excitement into our work lives. It’s a lot easier to feel cooped up, restless, anxious, and stressed, especially when there’s a deadly virus wreaking havoc.
If you’re extroverted and enjoy the camaraderie of being in a physical location with your coworkers, odds are you’re going slightly mad at having to communicate over video calls. It’s just not the same.
If you’re a parent, and your children are studying remotely, we feel for you. We can’t imagine the struggle of having to balance being a parent with your full-time job.
If you find yourself juggling diapers and AirPods and mini-me’s wreaking havoc throughout your house, hopefully, we can offer some help to optimize your workday. Or if you’re spending your Monday on the couch elbow deep in Cheetos and binge-watching New Girl for the 3rd time while pretending to be deeply engaged in today’s umpteenth Zoom meeting… A change in your daily habits might do some good.
Here are some tips to improve your productivity and keep you from losing your mind while working from home.
Set a schedule and stick to it
It’s easy to roll out of bed at 8:56 AM, stumble over to your desk and be ready for work by 9 AM. Well, at least physically ready for work. But mentally? Not so much.
If you’re working remotely, don’t underestimate the power of sticking to a schedule. Even if you have a 30-second commute to your desk, you should treat your workday like you have a 30-minute commute. Instead of sleeping in until the very last minute, wake up 1 hour before your start time and give yourself a chance to prepare for your day.
With a headstart on your day, problems become a lot less stressful and easier to manage. When you’re playing catch up because you slept in late, it’s harder to feel in charge of your life and little problems start to slip through the cracks and turn into big problems.
So, set a schedule for yourself! Be consistent, wake up early, and prepare for your day. Then, when problems and issues arise, you’ll be ready.
Complete your hardest tasks first thing in the morning
Early in the day, our minds are at their freshest. We’re rested, and ready to take on the day. The accumulative thoughts and stresses from our day haven’t weighed on us yet, and we’re ready for anything.
This is when you should complete your most intensive and important tasks. Job permitting, you should line up your day so that a few hours in the morning are dedicated to your most important tasks. In the afternoon, after lunch and a busy morning, you should take care of your menial administrative tasks that don’t require as much brain output.
Lining up your day so that it syncs with your productivity levels can do wonders for your mental health, work performance, and all-around life working from home.
Take breaks every 20-30 minutes
Research shows that we’re more productive when we break up long periods of time working with short breaks. The Pomodoro Technique will help keep you sane while boosting your productivity to new levels.
Here’s a sample Pomodoro checklist to improve your productivity:
- Choose one task to work on and write it down.
- Set the Pomodoro timer (usually ~25 minutes).
- Work on your task without any interruptions.
- End work when the timer goes off and put a checkmark on a piece of paper.
- If you have fewer than four checkmarks, take a short break (~5 minutes) and then return to step 2. Otherwise, go on to step 6.
- After four Pomodoro sessions, take a longer break (15–30 minutes), reset your checkmarks to zero, and go to step 1.
Set up your home office in a separate, quiet location
It’s incredibly difficult to produce quality work when you’re distracted. Life’s full of distractions, especially at home. When you’re trying to focus in your living room or your dining room with all these things happening around you, odds are you’re not keeping your attention on your work for more than 5 minutes.
In Cal Newport’s book, Deep Work he discusses the importance of focused, intentional work. He describes deep work as “professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.”
Focused work is a valuable skill and one that’s easy to lose- especially in the age of smartphones, social media, and instant gratification. Our attention spans certainly aren’t getting any better with endless scrolling, Tik Tok, and a life full of memes and GIFs. Being cognizant of where our attention is during our workday is a great way to figure out areas where we can improve our productivity.
An easy way to set yourself up for success is by isolating your work area from your play area and relaxation stations. Technology has made it easier to be connected to your work at all times, but that doesn’t mean you should be sending work emails while you’re sitting on the can. So, separate your work area and try to set aside chunks of time where you can dive into your work and produce focused, detailed bodies of work. You’ll be doing yourself a favor, and you’ll realize just how easy it can be to let your attention drift.
Exercise every day
Probably the most important, and overlooked aspect of your life is exercise.
The best thing you can do to improve your life is making sure you’re moving every day. Even if it’s as simple as a 20-minute walk in the morning and afternoon, exercise has so many physical and mental health benefits that extend beyond your work life.
When you challenge your body, you challenge your mind. When you strengthen your body, you strengthen your mind. Life has a lot of ups and downs, and the best way to navigate those ups and downs is through movement. In today’s fast-paced world, stress levels have never been higher. Exercise is a great way to unload the day’s troubles, and it helps offer a new perspective on your life.
So keep moving! Keep implementing small habits like these to make sure you’re staying sane during these trying times. Working from home can be challenging, but by making some positive changes to your routine you’ll avoid distractions, stresses, and overwork. Life’s a wild ride. And we’re lucky to live in a world where working from home is possible.
