Working from Home or Living at Work: Balancing Work & Personal Life | BY JULIA BAIRD

Are you working from home, or are you really just living at work? These lines can blur easily now
that a majority of the workforce is working from home. Whether you created an office set up at
home or the couch is your new desk, work might be 9 to 5, or now much longer. Emails,
meetings, work messages at all hours of the day seem to be pulling you out of the moment.

If your new normal is living at work instead of working at home, this could be due to a time
management issue, even for organized people. Sometimes when a change occurs, (like a
global pandemic) it can throw a wrench into an organized system. If time management isn’t your
strong suit, now is the perfect time to work on that skill. There are online courses available. Time
management wasn’t a strength of mine until I really practiced writing down all my personal and
professional projects- I even noted when I would be calling a friend. More than that, I found how
I work best, figuring out how you best get your work done can lead to more productive work
sessions. I enjoy listening to music or having some sort of background noise- this helps me
really focus on the task at hand.

If ‘I don’t know to turn off the work mode because there’s always something to due’ mode, it
feels like you are now living at work and there isn’t a personal life anymore. This can be a
difficult situation because it’s important to care and like your work and make time for yourself
outside of work. You aren’t just your work, and valuing your time and self outside of work is
important. Giving yourself a break even if it’s 15 minutes throughout the day to have a mental
break from work.

Finding a balance can take some time, so don’t feel like change will happen in one day. This
takes time and consciously thinking about how you want to spend your time. What are your
priorities? How much time do you want to spend on social media, watching Netflix, exercising
and reading? Set time limits or schedule out free time. Buy a fun calendar specifically for writing
out personal goals.

There will be times when a late work night is unavoidable. Wanting to find a work, life balance
does not mean you aren’t committed to your work or don’t love it. Finding that balance is the
healthiest thing you can do for yourself. Balance means you value your work, your time outside
of work, and you value yourself enough to have and want both.