FindItMore | We’ve all felt the effects of working from home. Stay-at-home orders mean sleepless nights and blue light intrusion what feels like constantly. In this post, we give actionable tips to build a healthy technology relationship for a better overall you. Whether you work at home with kids, or you’re fighting the loneliness of freelance work—these tips will inspire a healthy work from home strategy through technology boundaries.
Technology boundaries are when you take responsibility for the actions and emotions that come with using gadgets throughout the day. Side effects of too much tech use can include obesity, lack of motivation, depression, and fatigue. Boundaries will look different depending on lifestyle, career, and needs.
General Work From Home Tips
Working from home is a wonderfully flexible alternative to a standard office if you don’t push it too hard. Create a dedicated workspace to build your morning and evening routines around. Don’t oversaturate yourself with news outlets, even amid a pandemic. Set an hour out of each day as a no-phone period to reconnect with self, family, or friends. Take walking meets outside whenever possible.
- Build a dedicated workspace: Having a dedicated workspace will help your daily schedule stay on track. By not eating or relaxing where you work, you’ll set psychological boundaries between you and your work tech. Invest in quality headphones and an ergonomically designed desk and desk chair. Don’t forget to surround your area with plenty of lighting and house plants to circulate the air. If you’re around kids, make a wall boundary, whether physical or metaphorical.
- Have a no-phone rule: Social media, constant emails, and notifications can be distracting for your focus and even your relationships. If you get the opportunity to have a meal with family or friends, make sure to make it a no-phone zone to reconnect on a personal level. If you’re working from home alone, set a no-phone rule that works for you where you set your phone on do not disturb or airplane mode for an hour.
- Don’t oversaturate yourself with the news: Constant articles with new information are coming out every second of every day, on every platform. It’s easy to get down on work and life if you’re constantly surrounding yourself with negative news.
- Take walking meetings: If a meeting doesn’t need to be in a set meeting space, conduct it outside and take a walk. Whether it’s for 5 minutes or an entire afternoon, the fresh air is good for your muscles, heart, and can restimulate your brain and give your eyes a break from the screen. If applicable, encourage your kids to come along if you can mute your mic. Physical activity will boost your children’s immunity—which we can all appreciate right now.
Working from Home Alone
Working from home alone is a dream for some, while they can be a nightmare for others. Some will take being alone with a full workload as a distraction and end up working to the small hours of the evening. Others will find it hard to concentrate throughout the day.
Set your working hours, and don’t forget to socialize. Most importantly, notice when and if you’re beginning to develop screen fatigue at any point (we see you, Netflix).
- Set work hours: Being flexible about your work schedule is an obvious benefit of working from home. You can wake up without the burden of getting ready for an office space. However, the negative side of this is that you may end up working through the nights. However, set a boundary for your work computer. Have a hard start and end times where you’re allowed to conduct work—and avoid the gadget outside of those times.
- Don’t forget to socialize: Working from home alone can get lonely. Make sure you take some time out of your day to reconnect with family, friends, a mentor, or a pet. Pick up the telephone and avoid texting. This will allow relationships and communication to dig deeper without miscommunication.
Working from Home with Kids
Working from home with kids deserves a medal. Not only are there little ones running around constantly, but your entire day can get thrown for a loop at the drop of a hat. Create a schedule and do your best as a family to stick to it. Make sure to give yourself and your family grace.
Work to improve the things that are in your control. Make sure to continue to have a proper diet amid quick meals. Finally, set morning and evening routines. Even if they’re short, it’s rewarding to have a constant schedule where you can.
- Eat a proper diet: Although you might not get a ton of time to yourself as a parent, it’s important to keep a proper diet. Eating the wrong food before bed can keep you up all night, whether you want to be or not. In contrast, eating a good meal for breakfast can give lasting energy throughout your morning.
- Set morning and evening routines without tech: Although your day may include a few, albeit many interruptions, it doesn’t mean that you can’t find peace within a routine. When you wake up, avoid immediately reaching for your phone. Without consuming passive technology, you’ll have a healthy boundary to mirror throughout the rest of the day.
Go about your morning routine, whether 5 minutes or 20 minutes and rejoice in the moments to start the day. In the evening, avoid checking technology 30 minutes before bed set it in another room if possible. Take some time to sit in silence and think about the most successful part of your day.
Companies that are using technology to maximize the productivity of employees are going to come out best—it’s just up to ourselves to honor our boundaries and find a balance between the rest of life. Use these tips for healthy technology boundaries from Panda Security to create a work schedule that works in your benefit, instead of against it.
