5 Tips to Set the Proper Mindset While Working from Home
<p><img alt="mindset" class="aligncenter size-full" src="https://blogmanagement.momenteo.com/Content/blog-img/pajamas.png" /></p> <p>Working from home sure has a lot of upsides: you can work in pajamas, discuss with your cat, water the plants, use way more space than you could ever possibly use in a public space and turn up the volume on your favorite song. That being said, your home environment also has numerous purposes (cooking, working, playing, relaxing, sleeping, etc.), which often makes it hard to stick to one mindset. It goes both way. When you're overwhelmed with contracts, it can be hard to relax at home, constantly feeling the urge to work one more hour, even during the weekend. On the contrary, when the workload is low, you might just feel like cooking or playing video games instead of doing business development.</p>
<blockquote>"30 minutes of <a href="https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Clash-of-Clans-so-addictive-2">Clash of Clans</a> won't hurt anybody."</blockquote>
<p>Here are 5 tips to properly segment your life between work time and play time.</p>
<h2><strong>1. Wear different clothes</strong></h2>
<p>It might sound a bit farfetched, but the way you dress really help setting the proper mindset. No need to go for the boardroom chic, but having some clothes for work and some clothes for every other scenarios will set barriers. It feels so much easier to turn on the TV when you're in pajamas. If everything goes according to the plan, in the long run, you'll naturally associate clothes with a context, which should lower the temptations. In doubt, just wear a casual shirt.</p>
<h2><strong>2. Close (and lock) the door when the day is over</strong></h2>
<p>You're done with everything that was on your task list for the day? If you have an office at home, close the door, and lock it if necessary. It's out of question to go back there before the next work day. If not, at least turn off your computer. Set the right boundaries and respect them, even if it's hard at first. If you need to use your computer, you should at least shutdown every softwares related to work.</p>
<h2><strong>3. Don't mix the devices</strong></h2>
<p>If you can, dedicate devices to work and devices to leisure. Don't sync your email accounts on all devices, you don't want to get work notifications while playing Candy Crush, and you wan't to get Candy Crush notifications while working (you actually don't ever want to get them). Also, don't reply to client emails when you're not working, unless they're urgent. If you keep replying, they'll most probably keep replying, some basic bad habit reinforcement.</p>
<h2><strong>4. Plan your holidays and free time</strong></h2>
<p>Having a plan for your weekends and free time will help you avoid defaulting to a few hours behind your computer. No need to plan a camping weekend every week, but have a couple ideas ready: books that has been accumulating dust for too long, go do that hike, take a walk, cook that new recipe. Not being in front of your computer will drastically lower the chance of you engaging with anything related to work.</p>
<h2><strong>5. Empty your mind</strong></h2>
<p>Before leaving for the weekend, make a list of everything that has to be done when you come back. Defining a structure and knowing what's next will lower the anxiety associated with work, and you'll be able to appreciate your free time better. Forgot something on the list? Please don't unlock that door, send yourself a quick email or a voicemail, and quickly forget about it. Do you have any other tips? Share them in the comments! Happy billing!</p>
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