CAN YOU BELIEVE IT??? It’s been almost exactly one year since my last day working in the office. On March 12, 2020, we were told to take our computers and anything we thought we’d need for the next week and to head home. The expectation? We’d be working from home for one to two weeks, max! Now look, I’m not going to lie. My first thought was, “awesome, this is going to be a dream come true.” My job requires team collaboration literally 9 hours of the day. So I’ll be the first to admit I was not prepared for the 9 hours of sitting in front of a computer and with a headset on my ears. I was, however, totally prepared for sitting in my pjs and fluffy slippers.

I didn’t really have a desk or office setup at the time. I didn’t have work to bring home typically and my personal stuff was done from my laptop in bed. 🤷‍♀️ So, the start of the WFH life was me sitting at the dining room table all day. It didn’t take long to realize this was going to last much longer than two weeks and I was going to need a real setup ASAP.

Those two weeks have turned into a year. That has given me plenty of time to adjust to setup and identify a few key habits that make working from home not only manageable, but preferred!

Stick to a routine.

There is no doubt our previous routines have changed significantly. My commute time has obviously been reduced. It takes much less time to make it from my bedroom to my home office than it did from my bedroom to downtown. The time it takes me to get ready is also much less than before. I’ll be honest, not putting on work clothes and makeup saves me a good few minutes. We don’t do video calls so I don’t have to focus as much on being presentable (if there’s ever a day of a random video requirement, we are all in for a big surprise!). However, there are certain things that were previously part of my morning routine that I still do. I was able to push my alarm back a bit, but I don’t roll out of bed and go straight to the computer. I still wake up a good bit before my workday starts. I wake up early enough to get in a good cardio session, make a good cup of coffee, spend some time meditating, and start up the computers to get set for the day. These are things I have found to be essential to getting my head in the right place and beng productive. For some that may mean still getting dressed as if you’re going into the office. It may just mean waking up 30 minutes early to update your planner and set the agenda for the day. The point is, find that routine that works for you and stick to it each day. Don’t just wake up and wing it!

Skip the snacking.

I love snacks. Love them. It’s really just that I love eating. Snack, meals, sticks (kidding…except some days I’m so hungry I probably could eat the stick in my yard), it really doesn’t matter much. As a competative bodybuilder, I have a pretty strict and regular diet. I eat the same basic meals every day. There are however, a few “snacks” that are allowed. I qucily found that while working from home I was spending a lot of time in the kitchen. When working in the office my meals were prepped ahead of time and all I had to eat was what was brought with me. But now…I have the whole kitchen in front me of me tempting me. I had to set some rules and go back to only eating what was planned for the day. Skip the extra unnecessary snacking!! It’s easy to lose track of how many times you grab a handful of mixed nuts or a few pieces of candy between meetings. Prep the meals ahead of time, prep a few pre-portioned snacks and set a limit to how many a day are allowed. And don’t set up shop at the kitchen counter like I once did. 🙄

Be active.

I mentioned that I’m a competitive bodybuilder, so being active is not something new for me. I’ve been competing for over five years and training regularly for much longer. What I didn’t realize is how much movement I made during the regular day. When I worked downtown I parked in a lot about five blocks away from the office. I carried multiple backs. I went up and down a few flights of stairs throughout the day for different things. I walked from one side of the floor to the other to use the lady’s room…and while drinking more than a gallon of water a day, that happened a lot! Once I started working from home my morning commute dropped from five blocks to 20 feet. I don’t have any stairs to conquer between meetings. I was spending the full nine hours or so literally sitting in my chair staring at the computer. It didn’t take long before it started taking a toll. So we started making it a point on our calls to take a break every hour or so and just walk around. Sometimes I unplug the laptop and walk laps around the house while we’re on the call. Or I move to a different location temporarily and stand while I work. I don’t count steps and I don’t know how many steps I used to get in, but I try to stay moving during the day as much as possible to minimize the effects of long-term sitting.

Get outside.

This was a big game-changer for me. As mentioned above, I used to walk a few blocks to and from the office each day. I would take breaks at lunch and sometimes even just walk around downtown. There were multiple times I would be outside. Even if it wasn’t long and even if I didn’t realize it, I was soaking up some good quality Vitamin D. Switch to WFH and I was inside all day long. And because we were limiting all other activities to what was essential, I quickly found I wasn’t going outside for days at a time. Honestly, for me, it started to lead to a little depression. I missed feeling the sun on my face. This was so easy to correct. On my lunch breaks I started adding in walks to the grocery store for my needs (it’s a block away so easy enough to carry my groceries), Plus, that added to my increased movement. My favorite change? I found I could work from the hammock in my backyard!! A lot of times were just on a call talking out ideas and I didn’t need to be super focused on being able to type. So in the hammock, I went! It’s scientifically beneficial to spend some good quality time with nature and the sun. So get outside and enjoy the mood boost!

Separate work from home life.

This was not something I thought would be an issue for me. I don’t have kids and after the first two months, I was back to being the only one home during the day. So I thought it would be easy to keep this balance. At least, it was much easier for me than many of my coworkers. For the most part, I was able to maintain my normal hours and my normal commitments. What I found was that after I set up my home office I was using it more in the evenings to do the personal work I used to do from the bed or couch. And what sat next to me on the desk was the work computer. I found myself often sneaking in a little extra work or firing off an email or two after hours. It was too easy to “just take care of this real quick” and the work hours extended all through the night. It’s very easy to feel like you never really leave the office since the office is now your home. This ties in nicely to the very first habit of setting a routine. Unless you’re expected to be on call 24 hours, work hours are work hours and when you’re done for the day, close the computer, close the planner, and walk away. Spend the time with your family, walk the dog, go for a walk before dinner, or just take a nap in the hammock. Whatever it is you feel you need to do after work, do it. The work will be there in the morning.

Bonus! Embrace the chaos.

This last year has been a wild roller coaster for all of us. I have experienced things I never would have imagined in m wildest dreams. It has required a huge adjustment for this new way of life. It has also opened some doors that never would have been available to me previously. I have been afforded the time and opportunity to learn some new skills that will allow me to go after some dreams in the near future. I have had more opportunities to focus on my writing and the business. And I think that while maybe they didn’t love me being home all day initially, I’ve found my cats are probably not going to survive if I ever have to leave the house for more than three hours again. The past year has demanded a great deal of change, discomfort and confusion. Learning to roll with the punches and embracing the opportunities, and even laughing through the pain is going to allow us all to come out the other side stronger and happier.

As a bonus bonus, here’s a link to the FREE project tracking template I’ve developed to help keep me organized. Staying on top of all my projects has been a little more difficult these days but this allows me to keep it all one place and easily plan out the next steps.

I hope some or all of these habits can help you find balance and wellness in these chaotic times. it doesn’t look like we’re out of the woods just yet, but that doesn’t mean we can’t adapt and improve while we move forward! Stay safe and leave me comments on any work from home habits you’ve developed!

-C