Valuable Ways to Spend Your After-Work Time When Working Remotely

Although remote working policies have provided much-needed flexibility for professionals in our post-pandemic world, there have also been negative aspects of this experience that have also crept in.?

Since teleconferencing and telework technologies have advanced to the point where organizations can thrive with completely remote teams, research posted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) shows remote employees are working longer, spending time in more meetings and having to keep up with more communication channels. According to the survey of nearly 3,000 remote workers, 70 percent say they now work on the weekends and 45 percent say they regularly work significantly more hours during the week than they did before. ?

As many of us have started to live more “workaholic” lifestyles, it’s often difficult to separate our work and home lives and determine how we should be spending their time in-between stints of office interactions.?

While there’s nothing wrong with relaxing when you need to, there are a handful of things you can do with your time after work if you want to make the most of it.?

Here are some ideas.?

Commit Yourself to Some “You-Time”

It’s tempting to rush into spending as much time as you can with your loved ones after you’re done with work. For some people, this will be the best way to use their time after work, but for others, it can lead to problems.?

After all, while we might hate the commute to work, the commute back home does give us time to decompress and process the day. ?

Having ten minutes to yourself where you can wind down and think about what you’re going to do for the rest of the night can help you maintain a positive attitude.?

This can be particularly important if you’re working at home, as you don’t want to take the stress you have at work into the family dynamic. ?

You can use your “you-time” however you like. For some people, a great option will be listening to relaxing music while sipping on an adult beverage. Others prefer things like exercising. Experiment with different options to find what works best for you.?

Create a Plan?

Ideally, you should try to commit yourself to finishing your working day at a specific time – even when working from home.

Working from home when you should be relaxing might feel productive, but most of the time it simply leads to increased stress and burnout.?

Sit down at the end of each workday, about ten minutes before you’re due to stop for the day, and get your desire to continue working out of your head by planning what you’re going to do tomorrow. In fact, make it more formal by spending the time to actually write it down or type it into an electronic device.?

Having a to-do list of everything you need to cover can reduce your anxiety, by you prioritize and assign the right amount of time and attention to every task on the list.?

Writing down your plan is also a great way to get any concerns out of your mind, so you can move onto your personal life without feeling like you might have forgotten something.?

Know Your Priorities?

No matter how much you love your job, a lot of your life will happen outside of working hours. This is the time when you’re going to be making memories and enjoying the good stuff in life – so use it wisely. If you want to utilize your time effectively, know your priorities. ?

It’s up to you to determine what matters most in your world. For some people, it will be spending time with the family and watching their children grow up. For others, the most important thing might be preserving friendships and other relationships. ?

Editor’s Note: having just recently experienced the pain and sadness of losing a close family member, it’s hard to accept that I will never again get to spend time with him and enjoy the conversations, TV shows and other things we enjoyed together. As I reflect back to all of the extra hours I put into working, only now do I realize that I could have been spending much of that time with him and building even more memories. ?

Moral of the story: FAMILY FIRST ALWAYS!?

After you’ve focused on building your family and other relationships, consider what else is important to you – such as your physical health, hobbies, and activities you enjoy. Writing a list of all the things that really matter to you can make it easier to assign your time correctly. ?

Avoid Major Sources of Stress?

While you might not be able to spend your life avoiding all forms of stress, you can at least reduce your risk of feeling overwhelmed by common causes of anxiety.?

For instance, many people find it difficult to watch the news – particularly during times of crisis, like the pandemic, global wars, terrorist attacks or natural disasters. If you’re already feeling stressed, it might be a good idea to skip the news some nights and use that time to do something more relaxing.?

The best thing you can do after work might not be consistent every day. ?

Sometimes, you’ll find it’s helpful to follow a specific routine of checking out social media, responding to emails, or scheduling dinner with your former co-worker who you ran into at the grocery store last week. Other days, you might want to focus more on something specific, like using a hobby to unwind after a particularly stressful day. For me, it’s putting a couple of fishing poles in the truck, driving to a nearby pond or creek and wetting a few baits for awhile while I reflect on life and situations.?

When stress levels are already high in your life, avoid making them worse with things you know will cause anxiety. ?

Give Yourself a Break

Finally, don’t fall victim to the notion you need to plan every part of your life, from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to sleep. You don’t have to be doing something valuable 24/7 to make the most of your life. It’s up to you to decide how you want to use your time. If you’re happy, then you’re making the right choices. ?

As you consider how you might incorporate these ideas into your daily life, always remember that it’s a great idea to find one or more thought partners who can not only help you craft great ideas on how to spend your out-of-office time, but can also help hold you accountable to putting work aside when you are supposed to focusing on you.?

Beyond those folks, if you need more assistance in trying to find a better work-life balance, working with a leadership coach can be very helpful.?

Please use this link to schedule a free 15-minute coaching consultation and let’s talk about it!?

#careercoachDJA #timemanagement #remotework ?