Written by: Gina Martin, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Over the past couple of years, working from home has become more and more popular; in an article published by findsatck.com, the statistics say that 4.3 million Americans are currently working from home, which accounts for about 3.2% of the total workforce.
However, many of us were offered the opportunity to work from home during closures and lockdowns and without the ability to reconfigure our environments to ensure the optimal workspace was available to us. Suddenly, living rooms, dining rooms, garages, and bedrooms became dual-use, and the ability to leave work behind went out of the window.
People struggled to reassess their whole lives, family schedules, daycare, and many parents with school-aged children had to become accustomed to schooling from home while managing their work responsibilities.
Many things changed for the better: more autonomy, less commute time, flexibility in dress code, fewer expenses in food, transportation, wardrobe, etc. Although so many significant factors make working from home ideal, there are still challenges that get in the way of enjoying the flexibility and feeling like there’s proper work/life balance.
Here I share some best practices you can put into place to help you improve your work/life balance so that you can enjoy working from home again.
Revamp your environment: Having a dedicated workspace is vital to ensure that you can define where you work and where you sleep/play. Whether you have to use your dining table or an office, make sure that you make your work environment clean and organized. Clean up so you can start fresh the next day. Reconsider your current tools, technology, or furniture and see if there’s any room for improvement. If something is annoying you, maybe getting in the way, think about how you can make it better.
Practice breaking away: Make it a habit to shut down your laptop and put away your tools so that you are not tempted to go back after dinner to send “one more email” or work a little longer on that project. It is hard not to let work and personal time blend in, especially when working from home. However, it has been proven that people are much more productive, happy, and fulfilled when there’s work/life balance, and you can take sufficient time to unwind and recharge.
Make time to increase your creativity. Successful people such as Albert Einstein and Steve Jobs believed that having what they called “non-time” was crucial to developing new concepts and ideas. Have you ever been stuck on a project that you've looked through over and over, but you can’t seem to finish it? Then you walk away and come back later with a different perspective? That’s because you needed to pause and come back when you were refreshed and ready to tackle it with a fresh perspective. Take advantage and schedule some “alone time” each week to enhance your creativity.
Take care of your mental state: You might be wearing sweats or pajamas, but the stressful demands of your job, online business, or career are still here. Complexities of managing remote teams and cross-department communications and logistics can take a toll on your mental state. Be mindful of how circumstances might be impacting you. Create a few go-to strategies that you can use to reduce stress, reset your day and stay positive and energized throughout your day. Take a few minutes to do a centering exercise; it could be as simple as rubbing two fingers together and putting your attention on the feeling of touch for two minutes. This can reset your mind and attitude quickly, before and after meetings. If you are into mediation, try practicing it for a few minutes halfway through your day. Make time to connect with others every week outside of your workgroup. Also, scheduling time with a mentor, coach, or therapist can be crucial to your mental well-being.
Increase your physical activity: Don’t give up on your smartwatch or fit band yet. Even though your step count has taken a toll with less commute, you can still find ways to get your steps in and get moving. Find a coffee shop within walking distance and make it a point to go there twice a day. Volunteer to walk the dog; this will give you an excuse to pause and get some steps in. Put your gym time or yoga class on your calendar; this will help you be accountable and show up for yourself. Physical activity is crucial to your wellbeing, creativity, productivity, and overall joy and fulfillment.
One of the biggest challenges we face when learning something new or wanting to change is that we do not take the time to look at our default or go-to behaviors and habits before putting new ones into place. Instead of trying to change drastically, I suggest you start with one new habit at a time. Take what most resonates with you from these tips, and start there!
If you found this article helpful, please share it with someone you know who can use some inspiration.
Gina Martin, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Gina Martin is a Self-Leadership expert, Life and Leadership Coach, Entrepreneur, Mother, and Breast Cancer survivor. Gina’s Self-Leadership journey started when she became a single mother and immigrated to the US before turning 18. As an entrepreneur, she built two direct sales businesses where she drove record personal and team sales and received national recognition and multiple awards. Her passion for sales, love for people, and personal development led her to start her Retail Leadership journey. She trained, promoted, and impacted hundreds of individuals over a twenty-year career. She has led cross-functional teams of up to 600 people for prestigious brands such as Victoria’s Secret, GUESS, Inc., and Gap, Inc. She is the founder of Gina Martin Coaching. As a Coach, she utilizes all of her life and career experiences to help her clients discover and develop their self-leadership skills, unlock what’s keeping them from achieving the success they deserve and inspire them to take massive action to create the life of their dreams.
