Creating Boundaries for a Better Work-Life Balance

Pre-pandemic, it was difficult to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Even after leaving the office for the day, emails were still checked and responded to at the dinner table; calls were made and taken after business hours. Now with many of us working remotely from home, the delineation between personal and professional life has been obscured to the point of being nonfunctional. The result? We’re always working. Or at least we feel that way, and that feeling tends to result in burnout quickly. To prevent this from happening, it’s important to create boundaries, both physical and mental, to keep your work and your life separate. If you can, designate an area in your home where you work, and use that space only for those activities. Set work hours and stick to them. This means hard starts and stops that are intentional. Finally, make sure you are advocating for yourself and taking the time to do things you enjoy. Make social plans outside of work and take care of both your physical and mental health. It’s easy to let work consume your entire life when you’re always available—don’t let that happen to you.