Workers who trudge into an office every day are jealous of people who work from home. After all, the work-from-home crowd does not have to battle rush-hour traffic, listen to office gossip, or smell the day-old fish that their fellow employees are microwaving in the office cafeteria.
The grass is always greener right. But the truth is, people who work from home have their own set of issues to face. The main one being that it’s hard for them to stop working. When your work place is also where you unwind, it can be hard to transition. It’s not unusual that these people start working and then 11 hours later realize that they are still working.
Luckily, there are some things individuals who work from home can do to help them keep the balance between there personal home life and their work home life.
- Set up a time for your “close of business”: Be sure you set a time to end work. No matter what that looks like for you. It could be a normal 9am to 5pm, or 12pm to 8pm. Just make sure that you stick to it and shut your computer off when your day ends.
- Do something for yourself: When your day ends, be sure to do something for yourself. It doesn’t have to be much. Watch a TV show, work out, or read something non-work related. This habit will help you no matter when you have set your workday to end. This can be something simple: Maybe you want to take it easy on the couch and stream a few episodes of your favorite sitcom. Or it may be a bigger deal, such as a dinner date with a friend or a trip to the movies. Getting a mental break will help get you psychologically out of your work.
- Leave the house: When you work from home it is easy to end up spending nearly all your time at home. So, it’s essential to notice this is happening and leave the house. Make dinner plans with your friends or go hiking. You should do anything to make certain you don’t go all week without leaving the house. That’s just not healthy.
Overwork causes stress. Whether you work from home, in an office, or out in the field, the key to preserving your sanity is to reserve non-work time for yourself. But what if you cannot force yourself to shut off the workday? Then it might be time to consider returning to the office, where there’s always someone around to shut off the lights and chase you out of your cubicle.
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