How To Create Work-Life Balance Working From Home

Tips for Balancing Work-From-Home Schedules

Our lives are slowly getting back to normal in our post-pandemic world. In some aspects of our lives, however, we are learning to live in a “new normal.” This is especially true for employees who are still working remotely. According to Forbes, 12.7% of full-time employees are working from home in 2023, and 28.2% are working in a hybrid model. Overall, this shift is great news for employees, who are generally happier when working remotely. Even so, remote work has its own specific challenges. Specifically, workers have to learn how to create the right work-life balance when their home is also their workplace.

In this article, we’ll discuss some of the challenges of remote and hybrid work, and we’ll share strategies for creating work-life balance in 2024. Plus, we’ll show you some great corporate gifts that companies can send to their remote team members to help them adjust to working from home.

What are the Challenges of Remote Work?

The number of remote jobs has tripled since 2020, increasing from 4% to over 15%. That’s a lot of people who are now discovering the challenges of working from home! Here are some of the top struggles reported by remote workers who are trying to learn how to create a work-life balance.

 

Social Isolation and Loneliness

For many working adults, the majority of our social interaction has traditionally happened in the workplace. Without a bustling office, employees may struggle to replace that feeling of belonging. In one survey of 19 experienced remote workers, many of the top challenges listed were “isolation,” “lack of personal interaction,” and “loneliness.” 

More Distractions

Employees often train themselves to be in “work mode” when they’re at the office. At home, however, distractions abound. Video games, online shopping, household chores . . . a quick 5-minute break can easily turn into an hour before you know it. Add in other members of the household (especially kids!), and remote employees have a huge learning curve on how to stay focused.

Separating Work From Life

Just like your home can distract you from your work, your work responsibilities can easily creep in on your personal time. Many remote workers struggle to fully unplug at the end of the work day. With your work devices so close at hand, it’s tempting to hop on to do small tasks at all hours of the day. Finding a proper balance between work hours and personal time is one of the biggest challenges in a remote home office.

 

How to Keep Work Separate with Remote Jobs

Even with these challenges of remote working, there are some simple steps to help you learn how to find balance:

• Make Separate Work and Personal Logins on Your Devices. Stay logged in to your work accounts only during business hours. According to WeWork, this habit “prevents notifications and calendar reminders from interrupting you during personal time” and “helps reduce distractions and keep you more focused during the day.”
  
• Only Use Your Workspace for Work. When you work in an office, the change in location represents a change in mindset. You can mimic that dynamic by creating a designated workspace in your home. Only perform work tasks when you’re in your workspace, and do nothing but work while you’re there. For example, leave your workspace to eat lunch, and don’t check your work email in bed or on the couch. 
  
• Change Into New Clothes. The process of “getting ready for work” is another way to trigger your brain that it’s time to focus on your job. Wearing comfortable clothes is a huge benefit of working from home, but you should avoid simply working in your PJs. When you change into designated (but comfortable) work clothes, your mind can better separate work time from lounging time.

 

• Maintain Strict Work Hours. A flexible schedule is another benefit of remote work, but finding balance requires a bit of structure. Just as you would arrive at and leave the office at about the same time every day, you should set specific work hours at home, so you can “focus on work during those hours and relax outside of that time.”  Bonus: your colleagues will learn to contact you only during your on-the-clock hours.

• Make Breaks Mandatory for Yourself. The more relaxed atmosphere of your home can make you think that you don’t need breaks. But you definitely do! Avoid burnout by always taking a lunch break and giving yourself breaks where you leave your work area.

Going for short walks, for instance, is a great way to improve your mental and physical health.

Custom Gifts for Remote Employees

If employers want to attract and retain top talent in 2024, they must prioritize work-life balance. Logo-branded merch is a must for remote teams, and bosses can choose gifts that help improve the work-from-home experience:

• Shop Work From Home Apparel: Branded apparel helps provide your employees with designated work clothes to help separate work time from personal time. Merchology has plenty of options that are just as comfy as your favorite old t-shirt.
  
• Gift Logo-Branded Headphones: If a team member shares a home with others or lives in a noisy apartment, noise-canceling headphones will help dull all those distractions.
  
• Keep Your Team Organized with Work Bags: Backpacks and messenger bags help employees keep all their job supplies organized in one place. Plus, when they need a change of scenery, a great laptop bag allows them to easily take everything they need to their favorite coffee shop.

Contact Us

If your company is working remotely, you can help your employees learn how to find balance by sharing these tips! And contact us at Merchology for more work-from-home gifts that will help your team stay comfortable, focused, and happy.