In the office, out of the office – remote positions, flexible work time, face-to-face meetings, late nights, long commutes, no commutes.
It’s a be a year of change for many. However, there has been a shift across the globe, and more office spaces and workplaces are opening up once again.
But after more than a year of creating your own work environment and schedule, how can you keep that calm and organised feeling as everything opens up again?
When you remove many face-to-face meetings and commutes, you have a lot of time.
Yet, when you add in Zoom meetings, and family time maybe you don’t?
It was a lot to work out, and it was imperative it was tackled quickly.
The balance was hard-won, and now it is time to get to grips with the new normal – because it’s changing again.
Notes & Schedule
If you aren’t already taking notes, then it is time to start. Write short notes on small sticky notes and place them around your computer screen to help remind you of tasks you need to do.
You can also dictate notes into your phone.
Trying to remember everything without writing it down will cause trouble. Make it easy, and make notes.
Create a realistic schedule that gives free time, travel time, family/friends time and anything else you need.
Print your schedule and keep it somewhere near your WFH area. Remember to add anything important as you go.
- Friend visits
- Work meetings
- Update card details
- Renew car insurance
- Order printer ink online
- Movie or game release date
- Ordering travel passes
- Work deadlines
If it matters and will have an impact, add it on. Use it as your guide to what you have coming up in the next month.
Procrastination
A little bit of daydreaming here and there is proved to be good for us, as it relaxed the brain and allows it to make important connections.
Often coming up with great ideas – as an example, when you are taking a shower or washing the car, a great idea pops into your mind.
However, cleaning your whole home for 6 hours instead of tackling a 15 minute boring/difficult task isn’t great.
Every time you catch yourself drifting off-task, notice what caused it, and remind yourself that you need to get it done.
Neaten Up
The chances are you have had to be very neat when working from home.
Now you are switching to half in the office and a half at home, or working in the office with occasional working from home – it is much harder to keep it clean.
Because you are working at your home workspace less, it can often become a dumping ground.
Over time this stacks up, and when you finally work a day from home – you’re delayed because you need to clean the area.
Set aside at least an hour a week to clean your workspace. Remove rubbish, put everything in its place.
Physical clutter causes mental clutter – avoid this by tackling the mess head-on.
Set Goals
Do yourself a bit of a favour and set goals. Decide on what you want, and you will begin to work towards it.
If you want a big promotion at work or a pay rise, or perhaps you want to be noticed by headhunters, then you’re going to have to kick it up a notch.
If you want to take two weeks off work and travel to a far-off destination with an all-inclusive package, business class flights – then you need to focus on saving and saving well.
Give yourself solid goals to work towards, and you will see a marked improvement in your organisation and productivity.
Say No
Staying organised on your own terms can mean saying no to things that aren’t beneficial to you.
If you have a set schedule for the next three weeks, but a friend has asked you to do something for them – how will that impact you?
If the fallout is working late for one night, that might not be so bad. If you find that helping out takes more hours than you thought, how much will your day need to be adjusted?
What is the impact on you?
Making sure things fit with you, meet your expectations, and don’t impacting your balance and free time is essential – not selfish.
Prioritise
Sure taking a three-hour nap might sound like the best thing in the world. But if you took a twenty-minute refresh nap and then tackled some work, spent some time with family or on a hobby – isn’t that better?
Look for what you can delegate and what needs immediate attention.
Prioritise things that can’t be put off.
Once you can highlight what needs to be done, what can wait, and what can be crossed off, you’ll see a lot of free time appear.
Being organised takes effort and upkeep. Dedicate effort and time to giving yourself a great balance, and you’ll have a more enjoyable work-life balance in no time.