3 Main Tips for Managing Stress When Working from Home

“It is more than likely that you will have been working from home this year due to the ongoing situation around coronavirus. Although this might seem like a dream situation for some, working from home presents its own challenges. It can be challenging working from home and avoiding distractions but also managing stress when you have a large workload. However, there are a number of different things that you can do to manage stress when working from home. We have put together a guide with some simple steps on how you can manage stress at home.

Set Yourself a Routine
One of the most important steps for minimising stress when working from home is making sure that you set yourself a proper routine. This is something that we all have when we have to travel into work but something that often goes quickly out the window when working from home. It is important to set an alarm and get up for work as you would usually do and have a shower and breakfast before starting work. You don’t have to get up at the same time as you usually would but make sure that you give yourself enough time to wake up properly and be ready to work your usual hours. Ensuring you take a lunch break is also important as it keeps up a regular working routine too.
Keep In Contact with Your Colleagues
Something that people often take for granted at their workplace is the interaction with colleagues and other people in general. One of the best ways to alleviate stress is to make sure you stay in contact with your colleagues while working from home. This doesn’t just mean via email either, there are plenty of messaging platforms that you can use to stay in more regular contact. Work friendly messenger services such as Microsoft Teams and Slack have become massively popular during lockdown. They allow you to message colleagues even about non work related questions or concerns you might have in a more informal way than email.

Dedicate a Workspace
Giving yourself a dedicated workspace and area can also help to make it feel much more like a day of proper work than working from home. If you are working on a laptop then of course you have the ability to work from anywhere in your home, but you should set up one base. This is because working from the sofa or your bed can lead to unnecessary distractions and cause stress when you fall behind with your workload, and fails to provide you with a barrier between work and home life. Instead, choose an area of the home that you can set up and work from on a more permanent basis. Even if you don’t have an office space, taking a corner of the kitchen table could be a solution to this problem.
These are the three main tips to help you minimise stress but there are some other things you can do. Setting boundaries with family members and children can help, letting them know that you have to work but will spend time with them later is a good way to do this. You should also remember that this is an unusual situation and others will be feeling stressed too. Reach out to people and understand that you might not be as productive at home. If you are looking to set up a home office, we have a wide range of products here that are suitable.

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