How Do You Maintain Work-Life Balance While Working Remotely?

While flexibility is a major perk of working from home, it often creates an unhealthy work-life balance. I mean, if you are online ‘always,’ how do you maintain work life balance while working remotely?  

Remote employees can make the most of working from home and create flexible schedules. But flexibility is typically accompanied by increased work stress, especially when you work non-conventional work hours.  

The pressure to be online at all hours might be more – without colleagues reminding you about breaks, lunch, or coffee, remote workers work extra hours.  

Moreover, achieving a healthy work-life balance for remote workers takes meticulous thinking, planning, and execution. Whenever I’ve thought about work-life balance, I am sure I’m not the only one thinking about both in perfect harmony – to give equal hours of work and personal life.   

However, this literal view is unrealistic, and it tends to impact my mental health negatively. It left me feeling unaccomplished and incredibly overwhelmed. It took me some time to realize that work-life balance is a blending of both aspects of my life.  

Also, it can look different for everyone – and most importantly, it is subject to change daily. Moreover, it will also differ if you are married, single, or have children living with you. This is normal, considering we all have our own lives with unique priorities.  

And that’s fine! 

In this blog, I’ll tell you how you maintain work life balance while working remotely. Whether you are new to the fold or an experienced remote worker, my guide will likely help you grow and stay productive professionally.  

What Is Work-Life Balance?

Work-life balance describes how professionals divide their time between personal and professional obligations. When a professional has a healthy work-life balance, they spend time at work in a way that doesn’t make them feel overwhelmed and overworked. They can easily focus on different aspects of their lives.

How Do You Maintain Work Life Balance While Working Remotely?  

Finding the right balance between your personal and professional life is about priorities. With the help of the right productivity strategies, communication tools, and time management techniques, you can quickly complete all the tasks on your to-do list.  

Chances are that all my tips might not work for you – and you come up with a few tips of your own. In that case, don’t be selfish, and share your thoughts in the comments below.  

Here’s what worked for me: 

1. Creating a schedule and trying to stick to it as much as possible. 
2. Marking myself online and offline on communication channels.  
3. Balancing your work fatigue with post-work plans. 
4. Not canceling or moving meetings. 
5. Going on walks. 

1. Create A Schedule And Follow It Consistently:

When you are working remotely, it can start feeling like you must be online all the time. Moreover, if you are working on a schedule different from the rest of your colleagues, things can get a little too flexible for you. This, in turn, leads to the absence of work-life balance.  

So, it is best to stick to a schedule when working remotely. It will not just boost your productivity; it will also improve your work-life balance.  

Moreover, your colleagues will be aware of your work hours. That way, you can focus on your personal life without work and avoid working all day hours.  

In addition, if work keeps coming up at a time that needs you to stay late or log in early every day, it is your sign. It is time to fix your work hours – be available at the decided hours and be offline once you are off the clock.  

2. Use Tools To Indicate Your Offline And Online Hours At Work:

Once you devise a schedule that works best for you, start using tools to communicate your schedule to your colleagues, especially the ones working from different time zones and locations. That way, your team will be most respectful and mindful of your time.  

So, to achieve a good work-life balance, you set your availability on Teams or Slack – that way, you will not get notifications outside of your work hours. You can also mark your work hours on Google Calendar so that events outside your work hours get declined automatically.  

In addition, when you make your schedule public, your colleagues respect your time more. Instead of bombarding your device with meeting invites in the middle of the night or early in the morning, your colleagues might just start scheduling meetings as per your availability.  

Why Is Work-Life Balance Important?

An unhealthy work-life balance can negatively impact an employee’s health, growth, and happiness. Typically, it stresses you out, making you feel like you don’t have control at work or in your personal life.  

Professionals who have a healthy work-life balance are relatively happier and hardly stressed. These individuals will likely be more productive, motivated, and better at work.  

Moreover, as per research, many remote workers have always cited a good work-life balance as their most significant reason to work from home. They can plan their day, be productive, finish their tasks efficiently, and focus on their personal lives.

3. Balance Your Work Fatigue With Post-Work Plans:

If your workspace and living space are in the same location, it can be difficult to draw a line between your professional and personal lives.  

Even when you close your laptop and sign off for the day, stepping away can be difficult. It can feel like you don’t need to go offline anytime if you are working remotely with nothing to do after work.  

As a result, if you are working remotely, seeking work-life balance is vital, as well as making plans post-work and following your schedule. Whether those plans include a yoga class or happy hour cocktails with friends, if you have a plan after work, you are more likely to sign off and subsequently stop working.  

4. Don’t Move Or Cancel Your Meetings:

Don’t use remote work as your excuse to be unproductive. It might be tempting to cancel your meetings or move them to the next day when you are at work. But that will make your next workday challenging if you put too much into your schedule.  

Instead, use video conferencing apps and hold live meetings from your location. That way, you will be able to keep up with your schedule even while you are working remotely.  

5. Create A Workspace:

While discussing how to stay focused when working remotely, I discussed the importance of creating a designated workspace. With the right workspace, you can boost your productivity, complete your to-do list during work hours, and achieve a healthy work-life balance. 

Moreover, working remotely is more distracting than working from the office. You are alone and distracted without any colleagues around you to motivate you and keep you busy. Additionally, your home will have more distractions than your office.  

So, if you work from your bedroom, where you normally relax, you will get distracted repeatedly throughout the day. As a result, it is best to work from a designated workspace – choose a spot where you can be productive. Keep this space organized and clean.  

6. Take Walks: 

Even if it is only for five minutes, you should get up and go on a walk – stand, stretch a little, and get some Vitamin D. You can also take your pet dog out on a walk (in case you are a dog parent, or take a stroll around your neighborhood, or just spend some time visiting your favorite local park.  

This can work wonders – no matter your choice, you will be ready to deal with your to-do list when you return to work.