How I manage to work from home

Are you adapting to the Corona pandemic by working from home? Do you think it’s hard separating personal life from work? The recent years have been challenging, especially for extroverts. In this article I’m going to give tips from personal experience on how to manage your work-life balance.

When the Corona situation hit, I got laid off from my safe and comfortable job. After searching for a new workplace I ended up at a completely remote company, where everybody lives hours apart. This introduced a new type of discipline, values and new ways of thinking. Here’s three techniques I learned.

1. Dedicate a place for work

2. Take daily lunch walks

3. Be grateful

1. Dedicate a place for work

I made a mistake when I started my new job, I sat on the couch from when I started working, to when I went to bed. My mind wasn’t separating my work, and my free time. I could work longer hours because “work is fun”, or I could leave earlier and I’ll start earlier in the next day. Slowly but surely, work and personal life became one. 

Realizing this I know I had to change something, I got my laptop and moved everything to my desk, and turned it into a workplace. No more should I sit on my couch and associate it with work. Now when I walk away from my office chair, I’m free for the rest of the day.

2. Take daily walks

When I worked at my previous company I could take daily walks to and from work, I could walk in the office and talk with my coworkers. Now I’m sitting by myself, in my apartment, and working alone. It’s mentally tiring, and can be mitigated by walking outside during lunch to get fresh air and see other people. 

3. Be grateful

A lot of people that are working in the public sector put their health at risk every day by keeping society rolling. Some fortune people, such as myself, have the unique opportunity to work in a safe and comfortable environment. Be grateful that your employer grants you this privilege where you don’t need to risk your health for keeping food on the table.