You may be wondering how on earth I traveled 3 hours to work every day for 2 years and am still alive. Actually, I also don't know how I even survived that, to say the least. I have posted about that here.
When my previous company removed our free shuttle transportation, my travel time was even extended to 4 hours as public transport is not readily available. But that was the last straw. And so, I decided to move on with my life and look for a better alternative. Luckily for me, I found one in the form of work-from-home. I found one 5 months ago and I haven't looked back since.
When I started working remotely from home, I realized it was going to be a challenge to get used to this new lifestyle. After all, I was used to traveling long distances to work every single day. But I was determined to make it work and eventually I did. Now I hardly miss my old job.
There are 5 points that I am going to share with you guys on how I balance life and work. Actually, it is more of a life than work as I get to spend time with the people that really matter even while I am working. That is one of the things that I really love about working from home - there are no set working hours and I have the flexibility to manage my own time the way I like.
Going back to the 5 points that I mentioned earlier. Here they are;
Schedule your day ahead. This is something that I have been doing right from the start and it has helped me to keep myself on track and motivated to finish my work within the deadline I set for myself. This is to prevent your work from getting in the way to your personal time.
Prioritizing your task. This is a very important point to remember, especially for those of you who are just starting out and are feeling overwhelmed by all that you have on your plate. You may want to complete your task from the easiest to the more complicated one. Or finish those that are urgent. Prioritizing tasks will help you maximize your productivity and manage your time for some important personal stuff.
Staying organized. One thing that I find really useful is to keep a planner and schedule everything in there including appointments, deadlines, and my to-do-list for the day. This helps me keep track of everything that I have to do without forgetting anything in the process. And at the same time will help you organize your personal tasks from your work deliverables.
Setting of boundaries. Sometimes, when you are in a work-from-home setup, it is tempting to peek in your email from time to time even if it is your time-off. That is why setting of boundaries is important. It is about making a choice to prioritize the things that really matter. What I normally do is to have a separate area in the house intended for work. I also have a separate computer for work and for personal stuff.
Lastly, take a break. Create a downtime. When it is your lunch break, get out of your home office or work desk and go somewhere. Luckily for me, I have a lot of emotional support waiting for some cuddling every now and then. When I am a bit burned out, I go to my backyard and spend some time in my garden.
Now, there are a lot of ways to balance your life and work. These are just some of the things that work out for me. According to Betsy Jacobson, “Balance is not better time management, but better boundary management. Balance means making choices and enjoying those choices.”
I hope I was able to give you some helpful tips in achieving a healthy work-life balance at home. Remember, work-life balance is not just about separating your life from your work. It is also about enjoying your life even while you are working. After all, we work to live and not live to work.
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Super daming time hahaha
Uhuh. Consistent ang writing gig regardless 😅
Hahaha very good ka jan. ❤️
Noted po. 😄 Sana all nalang ta ani. But I'm happy for you daii. And thanks to ur furbabies for watching you always. Haha 😸😽❤️
Yes dai, they definitely an adorable addition to my new set up. Absolutely helping me with the adjustments. Except with the part that they are chewing the electric wires. Haha
I think no job worth it if you lose 3 or 4 hours traveling back and forth. That is terrible, so congrats on making a move. Working from home can be both good and bad, depending on your status. Having kids at home can make it difficult, but if you're satisfied with the change, it means it's working for you. Those 5 points are golden rules to respect and you nailed it! Well done and congrats on making the change.
You are absolutely right, there is good and bad side of working remotely at home. As to how you mitigate the negative side will depend on how well you balance life and work.
It work for me prolly because i dont have kids yet and i dont have any idea what adjustments i will make if ever there are other humans that need equal attention from my job.
Thank you for dropping by @erikah . Cheers!
Since COVID many people have started to work from home and it's essential that people adapt to this new way of working, looks like you have set up your system well, and you get to spend three more hours with your family every day!
I couldnt agree more. Time spent on the road and on traffic is time wasted that you could have spent for anything worthwhile.
Most companies today are adapting remote working arrangement or at least hybrid set up. Glad I was able to find one. Cheers!
I can relate to this. Commuting three times to arrive at the office and then going home, commuting two times but the waiting game was 2-4hrs. And I lasted for a decade, from being a student until becoming an employee. But now, I'm in a wfh setup and the biggest challenge for me is setting my boundaries to think that there's no overtime pay.
I have been commuting like more than 2 hours since i started working but the last 2 years was like the breaking point. But your decade of commuting that amount of time is something im not sure I can manage. Im impressed with your perseverance and resilience. Cheers!