Especially routine 8 can provide much more energy and focus while working from home! And routine 10 is going to make everyone around you happy!
Suddenly you have to get used to a new rhythm thanks to working from home. You basically don't have to get dressed, Netflix is constantly lurking, but you're still expected to just keep working. How do you best do that working from home? How do you make sure you are even more effective working at home than in the office? That you have energy to spare? That you can focus optimally? And above all, that you stay healthy, because that is essential right now!
Based on our experience at more than 40 companies ranging from Defense to Rituals and adidas to KLM, as well as the more than 13,000 participants of our Recharge programs, we've compiled an overview of the best tips and secrets of effective working from home.
With the following work-at-home tips you keep more time for yourself. Maintain peace of mind and have the energy to take it all in.
Content: how do you work better from home?
Morning routine - a good start is half the battleMindset & peace of mindYour physical environment - a clean house, a clear mindMotion - stay active throughout the dayNutrition - you are what you eatFocus - do more in less timeSocial environment - Who do you spend your time with?Relaxation - finally time for me-timeEvening routine - for the optimal closure
1. Get up at the same time every day
Our biological clock causes us to stay healthy. If you get up at the same time every day, you train your body in making the best use of that clock. The same goes for Saturday and Sunday, try not to deviate from that by more than half an hour so as not to mess up your system.
If you get up at the same time every day, you will feel more energetic and create time for morning routines. If you are tired, don't stay up longer, but go to bed earlier. This will not disrupt your biorhythms.
2. Don't snooze
When your alarm clock rings, get up immediately. Do not press snooze. Even though you can stay up longer when working from home than when going to the office. When snoozing, not only do you get up later than you intended - and as you just read, getting up at the same time every day is good for you - but snoozing also has a negative effect on your system.
When your alarm clock rings, you enter a state of alertness. This is good if you want to take action, but unnecessary and on harmful over time When you slack off again. Because moments later you get that stress spike again, and again. That's how you start the day stressed.
3. Start with movement
When you exercise, endorphins are released, the neurotransmitters that are primarily designed to counteract pain stimuli, but where you also get a euphoric feeling of it.
Exercise lowers stress and improves your memory, although those effects are sometimes temporary: in a study of the long-term effects of exercise on your brain, the largest positive effects seen in subjects who had exercised on the day of the test, not just in the four weeks before.
Starting your day actively sets the tone for an energetic and focused day and allows you to work from home more finely, efficiently and healthily. Our personal trainer Marc has recorded a sports video just for you, watch it here:
[work-out video Marc]
4. Take a cold shower
After the hot shower, turn the tap to cold. Start with 20 to 30 seconds and slowly build up to two, three minutes per shower turn.
It's a bit of a stretch, but the effects for your health are enormous. Your resistance improves and your blood circulation goes up, making you feel fitter. There is also strong evidence that cold showering helps you lose weight.
Besides, if you've had a cold shower in the morning, there's nothing worse than that moment all day! A true boost to your mental resilience, then, too
5. Dress even while working from home
Get ready like you do alt d before you start your workday. Your brain automatically makes a connection between certain outfits and emotions. Therefore, take a shower and choose an outfit that you would also wear on a "normal work day.
6. Train your brain
Your brain can be trained. You can do that with mindfulness (which we prefer mind fitness mention to make it a little more tangible) in which you teach the parts of your brain to work together better. Mind fitness works against stress, depression, perked up and makes you more resilient and resilient.
Curious about what that's like, such a session of mind fitness? Here you can listen to the session from day 1 of our Recharge program:
[Mind Fitness session]
7. Get to know your emotions
One of the reasons why mind fitness is so good for you is because you learn to (re)know your emotions better. Knowing your emotions also helps you deal with them better.
A specific exercise from mind fitness for recognizing emotions is the body scan. To do this exercise, simply sit or lie down with your eyes closed for a few minutes. Then imagine a large scanner going along your body. Notice where you feel physical sensations.
These sensations can have a physical cause as well as a mental one. In fact, emotions can express themselves physically. Doing a body scan teaches you to recognize what certain emotions are doing to you physically.
8. STOP what you are doing from time to time
A major pitfall while working from home is that you keep going continuously. Do an occasional STOP exercise To get more peace of mind and prioritize. The principle is very simple. Set an alarm clock for three minutes and (if you like) close your eyes. At that point you have already accomplished Step 1, which is: Stop. Stop what you are doing.
On to step 2: Take a few breaths. Take a few deep breaths in and out to calm yourself. Especially during moments of stress, this is very good for you.
After taking a few quiet breaths, you can move on to step 3: Observe. Observe what is going on in your body. What physical sensations do you detect? Do you feel certain emotions? What is your brain saying about these emotions? What are you telling yourself about why these emotions are there?
And finally, the P: Proceed. What observations you just made can you take into the rest of your day? What is the next thing you can do now, to accommodate how you feel? What is a priority?
9. Take a few deep breaths in and out
With a simple breathing exercise you bring yourself to rest. Do it whenever you want and however you want.
As long as, by slowing your pace, you bring your breath down to your belly - not into your throat, or "high" where your chest puffs up. Calm and conscious breathing brings relaxation, reduces stress and increases your ability to concentrate. Try no more than 6 to 7 times per minute to breathe.
10. Give compliments
Say something kind to someone three times every day. It doesn't have to be very big, but make it specific.
So don't say, "good presentation yesterday," but, for example, "how good that you started with a personal story, that way everyone was immediately engaged. Giving a compliment works both ways: by focusing on positivity you yourself get into a better mindset, but the other person also snaps out of it tremendously. And that can be really beautiful
11. Working from home is about more than yourself, do something good for another person
Do something nice just for once. Run errands for your neighbors, bring over a pan of food sometime, give to a charity. Altruism is not only pleasant for others, but also very good for yourself.
You will be happier of and less stressed. Which benefits working from home.
12. Highlights of your day
Simple, and extremely effective. The way to create a positive mindset is to write down your personal highlights of the day.
Make it a part of your evening routine - then preferably use paper, such as a Gratitude Journal, and not a phone screen (we'll get to that in a minute!). Or do it first thing in the morning so you start the day on a positive note. When you dwell on positive things, you become calmer, happier and more social.
Moreover, people who regularly keep a gratitude journal have stronger immune systems, less high blood pressure and fewer health issues. Again, something to be happy about.
13. Keep your workspace tidy
Maintain a clean desk policy at home as well. A tidy desk provides peace of mind.
Are you working in the living room or at the dining room table? Then take some time in the morning to bring order before you get to work. You'll find that you start your workday with much more peace of mind!
14. Prevent an acute hernia!
Make sure you have a comfortable workplace. Even if you have to invest just a little more time or money in it than usual: it's worth it. You want to avoid perishing with back pain after only three days.
If possible, arrange a keyboard and mouse for your laptop, and set up your screen at eye level. A handy option is to temporarily place a kitchen or bathroom ladder on your desk as a standing desk. Or you simply use 2 boxes. With a good stand under your bike, you can easily create your own Bike Desk.
15. Do exercises
Stretch your body. Doing good stretches a few times a week improves your balance and mobility. It also makes you stronger and more limber. Stretching vigorously three times a week is enough - and you don't have to take a yoga class to do that at all.
Unsure what exercises you can do? Eline helps you get started in this video!
[Video yoga Eline]
16. Prevent feeling trapped and extra pounds
''The walls are coming down on me, and I've already gained 5 pounds''. You want to avoid this statement, of course. Yet many homeschoolers experience this!
It is very easy to do virtually no exercise during a day working from home. At the office, you walk to the printer, to your colleague, to the cafeteria and you name it. At home, you only have to cover the distance to the bathroom and the kitchen. Be aware of this to yourself, and schedule several moments to take a moment to move.
Do you have a long phone call scheduled? Then do so outside, while walking! This provides fresh air, a change of scenery (good for your brain), and some much-needed exercise. Make every step count!
17. Think about lunch in advance
Getting and preparing lunch can take quite a bit of time. So think about this in advance, and do your shopping in advance. Plus, you'll also spread out your relaxation moments.
Are there several of you (roommates, partner, family) sitting at home? Then make it a shared moment. Agree on a time, set the table and actually take a break. Should you work alone at home, consider talking on the phone with a colleague during lunch. That way, lunch remains a social and relaxed moment of your day, which you mood and well-being a boost. Whatever you do: don't lunch at your computer!
18. Drink lots of water
Water is crucial for your body. But often we drink too little or too late - when you get thirsty, you should have had a glass. You need water to transport nutrients and get your waste out of your body.
Drinking water also helps against obesity and headaches. Coffee, as long as you drink less than five cups a day, is not bad for you. However, coffee can be addictive and keep you awake longer at night. Therefore, try giving up coffee altogether now.
19. Experiment with Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting is not a diet. In fact, it does not dictate what you eat, but when you eat. The most well-known form of intermittent fasting is the 16/8 schedule, where you eat during 8 hours in a day, and fast during 16 hours. For example, you eat only between 10:00 and 18:00.
Intermittent fasting can help with weight loss, but that is not the main reason to try it. In fact, it has all sorts of positive health effects on your body and your brain, and it might even help with slowing aging.
These health effects are due to the increased production of human growth hormone and the improvement of the insulin sensitivity.
20. Still just eating (healthy) but could use some inspiration? We've got your back
To give you a little push in the right direction, we have put together a 1-day recipe book for you including breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack! These recipes are easy to prepare and will give you lots of energy. Click here!
21. Maintain a tight schedule
During a day working from home, it is very easy to get distracted. A wash here, a tidy there. There's nothing wrong with this, of course, as long as you make sure you allocate your time productively and deliver what is required of you.
Therefore, at the beginning of the day, make a planning. Set some priorities that you want to have ticked off by the end of the day anyway. Be realistic and keep challenging yourself. Are you done with your priorities after lunch? Then pick some new priorities!
Notice that you find this difficult? Plan once or twice a day a focus hour for yourself. Turn off your notifications (yes, including your email) and set your phone to do not disturb. You'll be amazed at how much you can get done in that hour. Close such an hour properly, too. We'll come back to that in point 34!
Provide social pressure 22.
Do you find it hard to get yourself to focus for an hour? Through the online platform Focusmate you are paired with someone else who also finds this difficult.
Together you will focus for 50 minutes - afterwards you will discuss what you managed to do. Give it a try, who knows what it will do for you!
23. Eat that frog
Everyone has things in their life, in their work, that they look up to. Something you would prefer to put off as long as possible. Brian Tracy's bestseller, Eat that frog, calls that a frog.
He has two basic rules. If you have to eat two frogs, start with the dirtiest one. And: if you have to swallow a frog anyway, there is no point in dwelling on it. It should, he argues, become an automatism to always do the most difficult thing first: "Successful, effective people are those who get started immediately on their most important tasks and get used to working consistently and purposefully until those tasks are completed.
24. Put a stop to your dopamine dealer
Every time you get a notification on your phone,the reward center in your brain becomes activated. This causes you to check your mail endlessly, and be drawn to social media over and over again - those media live by this principle. Before you know it, you're addicted to your phone.
Not only does this take a lot of time, but in the long run it can lead to loss of concentration and poorer cognitive skills. If you want to be the boss of your own time, turn off all push notifications, and open your phone and your mail only when you want to.
25. Stay connected
Are you used to a stand-up every morning? Now do this virtually. Do have everyone, except the one talking, mute his microphone. Besides, you won't wander off unnecessarily!
Do you often find yourself brainstorming 1-on-1 with a colleague? Choose a platform like Skype, Zoom, Microsoft Teams or Google Hangout so you can see each other, and work together in the most natural way possible.
Keep each other informed of the status of your work, and indicate when you have room to take on extra work (as you would in the office).
And just as important: try to stay informed about each other's lives! So start the first phone or video call of the day by just catching up.
26. Agree on concrete results
If your colleagues do not have a good idea of your work, there is a danger that you will become less productive. Therefore, agree on concrete results with each other.
What do you deliver at the end of the day or week? What do you do if you appear to have finished it earlier? That way you keep the pressure on for yourself as well.
27. Children at home? Make arrangements with neighbors/acquaintances
Reading this while having four children sitting at home, you may be thinking: easier said than done. The situation is indeed not ideal.
But see if it is a possibility to make arrangements with others who are in the same situation. For example, do you manage to split the care of the children between the four of you as two couples? Then you can work three full days versus one day with the children.
28. Time to spare? Pick up a project!
Now, of course, it can also be the case that you don't have a whole lot to do at home. You want to prevent your work days from becoming a kind of disguised vacation where you don't really rest mentally because you know that you are actually working.
Think to yourself: is there a project that has been lying around for a long time, but never had enough priority? Then set yourself the goal of spending at least 1 hour on this every day, and longer when you have the space to do so.
And a final tip in this context that really doesn't need to be named, of course: use the extra hours you have to do something for someone else. Ask if there is someone nearby who could use help with grocery shopping, cooking or the kids. Set up a volunteer project. Or take an hour to give blood.
29. And above all, keep the mood up!
As an astronaut André Kuipers, who knows better than anyone what it is like to be cut off from the rest of the world, may give a tip about sitting at home then it is: ''stay fit and guard the good atmosphere.''
When several people spend a lot of time on each other's lips, small irritations can quickly escalate. For exactly this reason, Kuipers and his fellow astronauts invested a lot of time in the atmosphere to keep the mutual contact good. And what else can you do, according to him, to keep it together for as long as possible? "Keep sleeping well, keep exercising and do things for each other. Take over each other's tasks and don't put everything off on one person."
30. Don't forget to relax
Now that you probably work from home, your work and personal life will become one big hodgepodge. You'll work at the times when you finally have a moment to spare, and in between there are probably 100,000 other things on your schedule.
It is very important to both physically and mental take adequate rest. Adequate relaxation improves health, a positive mindset and helps you function better.
So first of all, make sure you are clear on what puts you in a state of relaxation. Reading a book, taking a bath, playing an instrument - what works for you? And then make that a priority. You can only take good care of those around you if you also take good care of yourself.
31. Efficient home working starts the night before: on time to bed
Create a regular evening routine for yourself. Especially if your rhythm is suddenly very different from normal due to working from home. Stay aware of the fact that it is basically a normal work week. The earlier you go to bed, the earlier you can get out of bed fit again.
32. Turn off your screens
Of course, from #Recharge, we recommend turning off your screens as early as 9 p.m.! For the last hour, grab a book or a game so you can roll into bed at 10:00 pm and catch 8 hours of sleep. This is not a bad idea in terms of your physical health either!
33. Good night's sleep
Two things are important for a good night's sleep. The first one, if it has already dawned on you: turn off your screens. The second: make sure you get 8 hours of sleep.
Sleep is vitally important. From research among nearly 400,000 Britons from late 2019 shows that good sleepers have a lower body mass index (BMI), smoke less and exercise more. Sleeping well keeps you fit. The Trimbos Institute prescribes seven to nine hours of sleep per night. Less, but also more is not good: sleeping too long or too short is associated with obesity, diabetes, cancer, stroke and depression.
Bonus: Reward yourself!
Last but not least, don't forget to reward yourself! After completing a task, completing a focus hour or just at the end of the day. Take a moment to reflect on what you have accomplished and be grateful for it. And reward yourself in an appropriate way!
What's next?
Now only one thing remains: get going! It may sound like a lot, but by picking up all these routines bit by bit and making them your own, you will find that it gets easier and easier.
Do you find it difficult to work on changing your ingrained routines on your own? Then the Recharge program offers the solution. During 5, 7 or 21 days you will work in a structured but challenging way to improve your routines for more energy and focus.
