Now more than ever, self-care is essential. It can sometimes feel impossible to implement a work-life balance while you're home during a global pandemic. Working outside of the office offers schedule flexibility and more lucrative opportunities, but there is also the risk that it can feel overwhelming and disorderly when there is no evenness between work and home life.
Managing a stable parallel between work, hobbies, chores, and family can be made easier by incorporating self-care elements into your day.
It's never too late to start a new healthy habit. Honoring a commitment to employee wellbeing and wellness is an important part of what we do here at Elements Massage. Adopting a skin care routine, setting boundaries, and even staying active can make a huge difference in your health and happiness! We have put together our top tips to help you and your coworkers cope with feelings of chaos, anxiety, isolation, stress, and depression to better improve your work-from-home experience.
Establish a designated workspace. By assigning space in your home for only work, whether that be in a formal office or at the dining room table, you create differentiation between work and home life. Keeping your workspace clean, tidy, and organized can help your focus, energy, and productivity. Furthermore, it aids you in developing a sense of self-care, and by way of extension, a sense of heightened care for your job.
Set healthy boundaries by scheduling separate time to spend with your family and friends. You may want to take a walk, make dinner together, or indulge in a collective activity that takes you away from the screens.
Create reminders to encourage you to get up from your desk and be active. Physical movement has been proven to better your attentiveness, as well as your posture. Engage in walks outside on your breaks, or practice stretching after every email or meeting.
Honor your personal time by not answering work emails or calls during offline hours. It is important to unplug, unwind, and recharge yourself so you can start the next day feeling fresh and rejuvenated. ‘You time’ is just as important as work time.
Maintain a consistent sleep schedule. Just because you may not have that Zoom meeting until noon, doesn’t mean you should sleep in until fifteen minutes beforehand. Wake up at the same time every day to help your body adjust to a productive at-home routine.
Although you may not be leaving the house doesn’t mean you can’t get dressed as you would be. Working from home may feel like a pajama fest, but properly preparing for work is an important aspect of self-care. Combing your hair, taking regular showers, and putting on your favorite pants suit, can help you adjust to work more smoothly and put you in a proper work mindset.
Maintain a schedule that offers an equal balance between home life and work life. If you are someone who gets easily overwhelmed by meetings, make sure you are rewarding yourself with time doing something you love afterward. The same goes for working too early, or too late into the date.
Just because the fridge is close by, doesn’t mean you need to spend the whole day snacking. A productive way to practice self-care is by nourishing yourself with nutritional foods and staying hydrated throughout the day.
Three words…Tender Loving Care. It’s important to remember that working from home can be just as taxing on the mind and body as it can be in the workplace. Ergonomic keyboards and a well-lit room can make a world of difference on your overall being, but so can indulging in your favorite Netflix series or a steamy, hot afternoon bath.
Taking time to reset, rejuvenate, reprioritize, and renew is important. Getting on top of our self care can really make a difference to our mindset and how we feel when we work from home. Whether it's adjusting to a new routine or adjusting to spending more time with our partners than we're used to, working from home can be challenging. Prioritize your wellbeing as much as you would your work. You matter too, after all.
Practicing self care while working from home can help you achieve your goals and still take guilt-free breaks while you do it. Direct your energy toward what truly matters.
The feeling that any task is a nuisance will soon disappear if it is done in
mindfulness. - Thích Nhất Hạnh
