I’m Julie Ramage, I’m the CBT therapist in EHSS at the University of St Andrews. These videos are aimed at supporting mental health and well-being in the time of Coronavirus. In this video I’ll be talking about how to establish a healthy work-life balance when working from home.
Work-life balance can be difficult to achieve at the best of times. Many of us are working from home at the moment – some for the first time and others more extensively than usual. One of the key challenges can be how to balance home-life alongside work, or work alongside what’s going on at home.
I’ll be looking: planning, space and time, routine, expectations of self and others, communication and reflection.
Whenever there’s a major change in working practices, it’s useful to make some kind of plan. What are we trying to achieve? What’s feasible? What do we need? What could go wrong or get in the way? How will we know if we’re getting things right?
A designated work space like a spare bedroom or office is ideal. For many, though, a corner of a kitchen table, desk in the bedroom or even the sofa is more realistic. And you might find yourself vying for space with other members of the household who are also trying to work from home; or with kids studying or relaxing.
Whatever the reality, some form of boundaries is really useful. That might be a system of signs to show yourself and others that you’re working. And also, signs that you’re taking a break, or you’ve clocked off for the day. If you are sharing with others, then plan for times when each of you are working – either establishing a shift system, or core working times when everyone is working.
A routine of some kind is really useful. The temptation when working from home is to take advantage of the flexibility. There’s a risk that if you don’t make a distinction between working time and leisure time that you achieve neither productive work, or a proper break. Many people find that routine gives them a sense of safety and purpose that can be reassuring at this time too.
Don’t forget to include leisure and home life into your routine – including the daily exercise, walks and time in the garden or pursuing hobbies and some time for relaxation and for watching the news.
Consider your expectations of yourself and others at this time. Can you really expect to do a full 8 hour day and home-school children? How much of your work can you realistically be achieve at home? Can you expect your family to give you absolute peace and quiet for the full working day? But equally, is it too much to ask that they stop playing the guitar when you are on a conference call?
Give yourself a break – this isn’t necessarily the time to expect yourself to reach your peak productivity. Remember that we are all facing difficult, worrying and frightening times and do acknowledge that. Part of playing our part at the moment is staying safe – so whether that means staying safe at work, or being safely out of the way at home. Try to let go of perfect and do what you can.
Communication is really important. Formal meetings are likely to be going ahead, through Teams or Skype, but you might feel left out of communications sometimes or feel that you’re missing the informal chat and banter. Although it feels unnatural, when you’re working from home it’s useful to plan more of this informal communication. Virtual coffee breaks can be a good way to do this – send invitations in advance so you know who is available and it works well to keep them short but reasonably regular. At the same time, be aware of the temptation of being available 24/7 – there’s very few things that are so urgent you need to respond immediately and in normal times, you’re not constantly available so resist the pressure to be now.
As well as communicating with others at work, you might decide to call a family meeting, listen to what others feel they need and be prepared to ask for what you need, as well as to compromise to accommodate others. It can be tempting to assume others know what we need and to regard them as being annoying or thoughtless when they act otherwise. Now is a good time to address boundaries and needs – try to be clear about what you need whilst trying not to take things personally when others tell you about the space and/or time they need.
Get others to help solve problems – children can take on appropriate tasks, help design systems for managing time and space and remind you to take time for life as well as work.
This is all new, remember, and you’re not going to get it right first time. Take time to reflect on what’s worked and what’s not working. Involve others in this where appropriate and be prepared to revisit your plans and change your routines until you find a new normal that suits you.
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