17 Tips to Achieve Better Remote Work-Life Balance

Working from home has become increasingly popular over the past few years, with more and more companies giving this option to their employees. According to the Pew Research Center, about 14% of all employed Americans are fully remote, roughly 22 million adults. Additionally, about one-third of Americans who can work from home are sure to take advantage of it. Working from home offers tons of perks, like flexible hours and the freedom to work from anywhere. However, it also comes with its own unique challenges. Setting boundaries and staying disciplined are crucial to maintaining a healthy remote work-life balance.

At Leap, we understand the importance of finding this balance as a 100% remote-friendly work environment. As one of our company’s core values, our team strives to win together as we collaborate remotely from all across the world. To help you successfully work remotely, here are 17 work from home tips towards striking a better work-life balance.

1. Create a Clear Work Schedule

Establishing a clear work schedule is essential for separating your work and personal life. Work out a schedule with your manager, communicate these hours with your team, and stick to them as much as possible. This helps you know exactly when to start and end your workday, allowing you to focus fully during work hours and relax afterward. A defined schedule also helps you better prioritize tasks. Do what you can within your set hours and defer non-urgent tasks to the next day. This approach aids in managing your workload effectively without feeling overwhelmed.

2. Have a Designated Workspace

A dedicated workspace ensures you can concentrate on your tasks without distractions. Ideally, your work area should be a separate room in your house or apartment with a door you can close for peace and quiet. If space is limited, having a desk in your room that you’ve designated for work can make a big difference compared to working from your kitchen table. Make sure it’s a well-lit space too, either from windows, lamps, or room lights, to keep your mind more alert as you work.

Want to level up your workspace? Decorate your desk with pictures, plants, and more to make it your own and get you excited to be in your workspace. Put posters and shelf decor (like memorabilia from your favorite fandom) behind you – it’ll make for a fun background in your Zoom calls!

3. Establish a Morning Routine

Starting your day with a morning routine can set a positive tone for the rest of the day! Whether it’s having breakfast with a cup of coffee, journaling, or working out, a morning ritual helps wake up your mind and prepare for the workday ahead. As a remote worker, use the time you save from commuting to an office every day to incorporate these healthy habits. A structured morning routine helps you transition into “work mode” even though you’re still at home.

4. Dress to Get Ready for the Workday

While it may be tempting to work in your pajamas, dressing up can significantly boost your productivity. This simple change in attire can influence your mindset and readiness to work. What you wear may also depend on your company’s policies, as some (like Leap!) have more casual dress codes, while others prefer business attire, especially for video calls. By dressing for the day, you signal to yourself that it’s time to get down to business.

5. Set Clear Expectations with Others in Your House

If you live with family, roommates, or a partner, it’s important to set clear expectations with them about your work hours. Just because you’re at home doesn’t mean you’re available for non-work-related activities. You need to stay concentrated on your job when you’re on the clock. In addition to your general work schedule, let them know about any important meeting times to avoid interruptions like someone accidentally walking in on the call or being loud in another room.

6. Free Yourself of Distractions

When working from home, distractions can be significantly more prevalent than in an office and can severely impact your productivity. For example, if your phone is a major distraction, consider using “Focus” modes to limit usage of certain apps (like social media) during work hours. Alternatively, keep your phone in a separate room or drawer, especially if all your work communications can be handled on your computer rather than on your phone.

Having a separate office space is super helpful here too, especially to guard you from additional distractions like family members, pets, outside noise, or the temptation of tackling household chores. To help curb the temptation of giving into the distractions while you work, allow yourself to take short breaks after getting a lot of work done to briefly check your phone, let the dog out, or have a quick conversation with someone.

7. Take Breaks Away from Your Desk

Time to recharge! After stretches of working for a while, breaks are essential for refreshing your mind and maintaining that productivity across your whole workday. Every hour or so, stand up and move around, especially if you’ve been sitting for a while, to get your blood pumping. Standing desks can also be great here! Get some natural light or step outside if the weather is nice. Simple activities like walking around, petting a dog or cat, grabbing a cup of coffee, or catching up with a family member can give your mind a break. These moments away from your desk will help improve your focus and efficiency when you return to work.

8. Try the Pomodoro Technique

The Pomodoro technique is a proven time management method to enhance your productivity. For this work strategy, choose a task and set a timer for 25 minutes. Work until the timer sounds, then take a short break (usually 5 minutes). Repeat this cycle three more times, then take a longer break for about 15-30 minutes. This Pomodoro technique will help you work in more productive spurts and prevent burnout. To help with this, you can listen to focus music via an app or dedicated YouTube channels like Focus Station to help you stay concentrated with relaxing, lo-fi music and a built-in timer for breaks.

9. Get Out of the House!

One of the perks of remote work is the freedom to change up your environment. As some ideas, consider working from a co-working space, meeting up with other remote-working friends, or traveling to new locations (with secure WiFi!) that you can work from. Should you work from a public place like a coffee shop, make sure to always use a VPN when connecting to their WiFi to keep your data secure! Working from new places and alongside other people who work remotely can help switch up your surroundings, boost your productivity, and keep you motivated.

10. Make a Daily To-Do List the Day Before

Planning your tasks the day before can give you a clear structure for the next day as you work on what you can accomplish today. Pick the four top tasks to complete each day based on what’s due and most urgent. By only picking four tasks to complete, you can focus on what’s top priority and feel like you’ve accomplished something at the end of the day. This approach will also give you peace of mind at the end of the day, knowing what you couldn’t finish today is scheduled for the upcoming day. For this to-do list, you can use a Google document, project management software (like Wrike, Asana, or Clickup), or a paper agenda to physically write in.

11. Work at Your Most Productive Times

Are you an early riser or more of a night owl? Identify your most productive times and schedule your most challenging tasks during these periods. For some, this may be in the morning, while others may find the afternoon their most productive time. If you want to determine when your peak work times are, track your productivity over a week with a time log of what you accomplished each hour. Studies suggest that most people are most productive before lunch and least productive around 2:30-3:00 PM. Once you know when you work best, a perk of remote work is the flexible hours to allow you to shift your work schedule if you tend to prefer an early start to your eight-hour workday, or if you’d rather start and end a bit later.

12. Communicate with Your Team and Get to Know Them

Because you aren’t working with your team in a shared office space, it’s crucial to stay in close communication with your team when working remotely. Use tools like Slack, Zoom, or Teams to reach out to team members regarding projects, notify them of any availability changes, and clarify other work-related matters.

To build better relationships with your colleagues, schedule occasional virtual coffee or lunch meetings with them to get to know them better. Taking the initiative to connect with remote coworkers can make you feel more satisfied at work, especially since it’s harder to build these friendships online compared to seeing each other regularly in an office. If you’re able to, try to meet up with your remote coworkers in person, especially those who live relatively close by. It could even be super fun to travel to meet fellow team members across the country too!

13. End Your Workday with a Routine

End your days on time! Having a clear cutoff to your workday is important for maintaining home work-life balance. By sticking to your end time, you’ll avoid working late into the evening since you don’t have to get up to go home like in an office. To help with this, silence work notifications after your scheduled work hours and put your laptop away to signal the end of the workday, allowing you to recharge for the next day.

14. Delineate Work and Personal Devices

For those working for a corporation on a company-provided computer, make sure to keep all your work on that device and not on a personal computer. However, if you’re a freelance worker or entrepreneur who may use personal devices for work, keep work-related tasks on a separate browser, use separate email accounts, and store projects in separate folders to delineate them from your personal responsibilities. This is especially important for these types of remote workers where the lines between home and work can more easily be blurred. Ultimately, keep your job’s tasks on your work devices, and keep your personal tasks on your own devices. This separation helps maintain healthy boundaries between work and personal life.

15. Eat and Sleep Well

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance as a remote worker starts with sleeping and eating well. While you may feel the urge to stop by your pantry more often than you would in an office, be mindful not to snack too much! Stick to a solid sleep schedule and ensure you get enough rest by turning off work notifications after hours (unless you’re on call). Staying off your phone within an hour before bed can also significantly improve your sleep quality as well. By prioritizing these work from home wellness tips, you’ll feel more energized and focused, allowing you to excel both at work and in your personal life. 

16. Go to the Dentist!

A big perk to working remotely is the flexibility to schedule needed appointments and other errands during the day to take care of yourself. This could include picking up kids from school, going to the doctor’s office, or visiting the dentist. Once you’re done with this personal errand, you can come back and work a bit later to catch up on those hours away in the middle of the day. Just remember to coordinate these with your manager and clearly communicate your availability with your team. This could include adding a blocked off time to your Google calendar, notifying team members when you’re away from your desk for an extended period of time, or setting your status to “away” in Slack or Teams.

17. Take Your Time Off, Seriously

When you have days off, make sure to disconnect from work completely. Take vacations, go out with family and friends, or just rest at home to truly recharge, ensuring you prioritize your mental health. It may be tempting to open your work laptop to briefly check your email on your days off, but your productivity will ultimately be better in the long run if you don’t. Additionally, when you need to take sick days, use them to truly rest and recover rather than trying to push through by continuing to work. A well-rested mind is more effective and efficient at work!

Our Work From Home Tips in Action!

Maintaining a healthy remote work-life balance is essential to having a rewarding career and being your most productive. From setting the right boundaries to optimizing your work hours, you’ll be on the right track to thrive as a remote worker. As a fully remote company here at Leap, we prioritize our employees’ health and well-being by giving them what they need to thrive in a remote work environment. Curious how we do that? Check out our careers page to learn more about our commitment to supporting our team and to winning together in the live events industry!