Working from home has now become a big part of our working lifestyle. This new lifestyle has its own challenges that might prevent you from being your best. Developing good habits and strategies will help to ensure you have a healthy mind, body and relationship with work. This will allow you to stay on track to achieving your goals with your team.
Create a divide between work and home
When working from home, it can feel like you’re always at work. Sometimes, this can be overwhelming and stressful. To overcome this, create a clear divide between work life and home life. Strategies such as having a specific area soley for work will help to ensure there is a clear segregation from other areas of your home.
Developing clear boundaries mentally about your work habits are also important. Developing a strict schedule for when you’re in ‘work mode’ and ‘home mode’ will help you to clock off mentally. Simple tricks such as having a work outfit and outside-of-work outfit may help you to mentally distinguish when you are at work from when it is personal time.
Create a comfortable workplace
For many, you will be spending at least 37.5 hours of your week sitting in the same spot. It’s important to make sure that it is a great place to be. Make an investment in purchasing the right equipment for your workspace. Have an ergonomic office chair to promote good posture. If you’re used to having multiple monitors or a standing desk, you might want to think about purchasing these to create the same feeling you would have in the office. Creating a comfortable workplace at home will help get the best out of you.
Maintain physical and mental health
Maintaining your physical and mental health is important. Regular physical exercise is one of the simplest methods of decreasing stress and preventing depression. The World Health Organisation recommends having at least 150–300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity a week.
At a minimum, get outside for a walk to enjoy the sun and the outside world. This will do wonders for your physical and mental health. Exposure to sunlight has been associated with boosting mood, providing Vitamin D and helping a person feel calm and focused. When working from home, sometimes you might not leave your home for hours on end. During the year, it can be dark when you wake up and the sun will set before you finish work, so it is important to take time out of your day to get outside and soak up some sun.
Managing your mental health can easily be neglected but it is just as important as your physical health. Practising mindfulness will help to alleviate stress and improve attention span. Mindfulness and other forms of meditation are just like muscles and require constant practice to become stronger. Taking 10 minutes out of your day is all you need to make a significant difference. Mindfulness apps such as Smiling Mind, MyLife Meditation and Healthy Minds Program are great tools to guide you through your meditation.
If you’re struggling with your mental health, it is important to speak up. Please speak to another employee, friends, family or there is professional assistance externally to help you through any struggles you may be going through.
Stay in regular contact with coworkers
Working from home takes away the face-to-face interactions we have with our coworkers. This can make us feel isolated and lonely, which can harm our mental health. Creating events via video calls, catching up in person (if possible), and messaging people throughout the day will provide the human interaction you need to still feel a part of your team.
Working from home has presented new challenges for the workplace so it is important to develop strategies for you and your employees to help maintain the health and effectiveness of your team.
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