5 Healthy Habits For Working From Home (COVID Edition)

We're all adjusting to a new norm from COVID-19. Many of us are transitioning to a work from home life so we want to share a few tips to help keep you motivated, limit distractions and help you make the most of this time!

Working from home requires a lot of motivation and a lot of discipline. While motivation is an emotion, discipline is the ability to take action. It's easy to get distracted by household chores, friends and family and sometimes, you can feel pretty aimless. Especially in these uncertain times- it's a bit different than what a work from home life may have looked like several months ago.

To help, we've put together 5 tips to start implementing in your work from home life: 

1. Set Small Daily Goals

Recognize that these aren't normal times and your normal productivity levels probably aren't the same. Setting small daily goals make productivity possible. Setting big goals may feel overwhelming. It's like walking into a large department store, there's a sale and you don't really know where to start. So start small. If you aren't sure where to start, check out The Daily 

The Daily is an awesome tool for maximizing your mornings and implementing daily practices that supercharge your efforts (no this is not an ad). 

 

2. Remove Distractions 

It is almost impossible not to get distracted when working from home. You will likely get distracted by social media, text messages, clutter, possible adventures- anything that isn't your work. We can't totally remove all of these distractions but we can definitely reduce that list. I will turn off my phone and put it in another room, schedule time in my day to de-clutter and seek out ways to limit any distractions that keep me from my work. If that doesn't help, changing your setting may be the next best thing. 

3. Change your Setting

Sometimes working from bed sounds really nice (I say as I write this from my bed- in my defense, I am in quarantine from traveling). I've found that it can be really hard to work from the same spot every day. I'll take my work items and a blanket and lay it outside and work from my yard or when I can go places, I'll relocate to a coffee shop. I work better in loud and active spaces. 

If you're working from a home office, it's important to love your space and feel inspired by it. When you love your work space, it's easier to stay in it (and want to work)! 

 

4. Create a Schedule

Working from home easily makes it feel like your work is never-ending. I can't tell you how many days I go and work into the late hour. Which ends up making me feel tired and groggy the next morning so I sleep in a little and that completely messes up my whole plan that I had for the day. 

Create a schedule! Mine looks a lot like: 

7am wake up, work out & stretch 

9am start work (work off my work to do lists and set reasonable, reachable and attainable tasks) 

12am or 1pm take a break and let my mind recharge

2pm (ish) get back to work 

5pm or 6pm wrap it up and take care of household tasks and "me time"

Everyone's schedule looks different. It doesn't need to be perfectly penciled out, either. I've found that I feel less guilty or as if I am neglecting other tasks and important responsibilities when I do have a schedule. 

 

5. Prioritize Mental Health

These are not normal times. Though for many people, working from home is a dream, others love the structure that comes from their traditional work life. Or they receive their social interactions from their work setting. If that's you, working from home may pose a struggle. Staying motivated can be impossible when your mind is distracted by anxieties so taking care of yourself should be a priority. Managing your mental health will in turn help you manage your work and other responsibilities. If you're struggling and need to talk to someone, there are resources available. 

Disaster Distress Helplineexternal icon

health care providers and first responders,

Helping others cope with their stress

Taking care of your emotional health

 

Remember to be okay with not being super productive right now. Some days you may not be able to focus at all. As this new normal sets in, everyone is learning how to adjust. Do the best you can and let us know if you found this post helpful.