Working From Home? Here’s How You Keep The Balance

As someone who stumbled into the online entertainment business at a very young age, working from home has been all I’ve known for the vast majority of my working life. I wouldn’t have it any other way: the freedom and autonomy that comes with managing your own time and location is absolutely wonderful and in my opinion, one of the best things about living in this day and age.

For all its advantages though, working from home has one major pitfall: losing a healthy work-life balance. It’s very easy to slip into working either much more or much less than you would have done if you worked in an office setting. The more freedom you have, the more discipline you will need to maintain some sort of structure and to have plenty of time for both work and a personal life. That’s what it all boils down to, after all: a healthy dose of discipline. Not the most exciting thing, but necessary.

I’d like to share the things I’ve found most important in keeping a healthy work-life balance while working from home. I’m a small business owner myself, but the same principles apply if you’re working for a company remotely.

Work Hours
The number one priority I’ve found personally, is to have set work hours and stick to them. I like to work the typical 9 to 5 most days with one hour-long lunch break and two 15 minute breaks in-between. This helps me make sure I put enough hours in to get my work done, but I’m not tempted to work evenings or weekends. Of course you could choose to work different hours, depending on what times of the day you feel most active and productive. I sometimes choose to book appointments, buy groceries or go to the gym at times when most people are at work so that it’s not as crowded where I’m going. If I don’t manage to tick everything off my to-do list in the hours surrounding that though, I’ll know to make up for that lost time in the evening or on the weekend.

Do make sure you give yourself plenty of time off, though. Like I mentioned, I have regular breaks scheduled into my day, and I won’t hesitate to give myself a little time off when I feel the brain fog coming up. Taking regular breaks helps you stay productive and sane, and the same goes for getting enough sleep. Aim for the recommended 7-8 hours every night.

Work Days
Building on that.. Having set work days is a good idea as well. Not so much for yourself necessarily, but to let the people around you know what’s up. I’ve noticed it’s easy for people to think that whenever you’re home, you’re available. And when you are in fact flexible and you can decide on your own work days and hours, it’s very tempting to actually be available all the time. However, working from home means WORKING from home. You probably need to put in as many work hours as any person working an office job, and getting invited over or asked favours when you should be working is incredibly distracting. Make sure the people around you know which days you’re working, and that you’re not available on those days.

Of course it’s up to you whether your day off is a Sunday or a Wednesday. Just pick one or two days to be your “weekend”, and stick to them.

Work Space
Depending on the job you do, it’s likely that you don’t want your work-related items (files, paperwork, electronics, tools) to mix with your personal or family belongings. I highly suggest setting up a designated work space somewhere in your home. It doesn’t have to be much more than a set of drawers where you keep all your work-related items, if your job doesn’t require many physical things. I do personally like to have a separate work desk as well, but my entire home office consist of just the desk and a few cabinets in our bedroom. It’s humble, but it’s what I need to have everything organised in one place and separate from everything else. Sitting down in your designated work space is also a great way to alert your family members or house mates to the fact that you’re working now, and not available for small-talk or domestic matters.

Another great advantage of having any kind of home office, is having the ability to leave it. A short or longer break is much more effective when you actually move away from the space you were in, and being able to “leave the office” at the end of the work day really helps you switch off and get out of work mode.

Don’t Mix
I’m sure by now you’ve caught my drift: the best way to keep a healthy work/life balance when working from home, is to keep a clear separation of the two. Try to resist the urge to do a load of laundry during work hours, or to keep working deep into the night/on the weekend when you’ve promised to spend time with loved ones. This is the biggest challenge for me personally (I love me some multi-tasking) and it’s absolutely ok if you’re not perfect all the time, but do try to be conscious about how you spend your time.

Try to keep your spaces separate, too. Even if you don’t have a designated work desk or you work in different places each day, make sure there is at least one area in your house where you’re not allowed to work. I suggest the bedroom or at least the bed itself for this purpose. Make the “work-free area” a space that’s purely meant for relaxation and for personal life to unfold in. Try to leave your work at work, as you would if you had an office job.

Stay Healthy
When you work and live in the same space, time can pass you by quickly and before you know it you’ll have spent a few days in a row cooped up inside your home. If you notice you’re becoming sedentary, try leaving the house and going for a short walk before and after work hours. Think of it as a sort of commute to and from work. Alternatively, have your lunch break in a café around the corner. Just make sure you do leave your house regularly.

Try to resist the temptation of working from the bed or sofa. A lazy position like that might seem comfortable at first, but it’s actually horrible for your back and posture in general. If you’re going to be working from home a lot, definitely invest in a good ergonomic chair and/or a desk you can stand behind. Make sure your computer screen is at the right height, and beware of spending too much time behind a computer. Stretch regularly, and drink plenty of water.

That about covers it, I believe! All these things are pretty essential if you want to make working from home, well… Work. Enjoy the freedom it brings you, and don’t let it carry you away.