Speaker 1: 0:42

Hey and welcome back to Productivity with Zest. I am recording this on a Sunday, which is not my normal. I had prioritised other things this week. You know what it’s like. I’m not alone, am I? But suddenly it’s Sunday afternoon at half past three and I haven’t recorded. So I politely asked the husband and children to leave the house for an hour so you don’t hear the sound of a football being booted at the wall or the playstation or the arguing, and I’ve carved out a little bit of quiet time. So while they go exploring the fields nearby, looking for frog spawn and getting deliciously muddy, we can spend a bit of time together.

Speaker 1: 1:23

I’m a bit nervous about today’s topic, as this is something I’ve been working on for a few years and gone through with a fair few clients, and I’m really hopeful that it will help you as much as them. But because it’s something I’ve developed, I’m just a little bit nervous. But before we jump into this, I wanted to extend an invitation to you into my free Facebook community. I have a group called Productivity with Zest, and it is a place that hardworking professionals just like you, whether you run your own business or not, can gather and support each other to get more done in a way that is aligned to you and doesn’t cause stress or burnout. If you like this podcast, then you will love it there. It just takes things a little bit deeper. You like this podcast, then you will love it there. It just takes things a little bit deeper. Last week, we did a five minute a day productivity reset challenge and it was absolutely amazing to see what people were getting through in a short space of time. I even did it on the desktop on my computer. It looks amazing. It was great. So head to Facebook and find us. Just search Productivity with Zest, or there’s a link in the show notes at zestproductivitycom. Forward slash episode 22, where you’ll find everything for this episode. Okay, back to today.

Speaker 1: 2:37

In the UK, 41% of people currently work from home for all or part of the time, and if you’re listening to this episode, chances are that you’re one of them. Last week, we talked about how to stop work from invading where it isn’t welcome and how to draw some great boundaries that will mean you can switch off, rest and actually be more productive while at work. The irony of the fact that I’m doing this on a Sunday is not lost on me, but this week I’m taking it a step further and inviting you to explore my own model with me and apply it to yourself to see if it works for you. With so many of us working from home, it is important to discuss the benefits and they are countless, such as flexibility, increased productivity, no lengthy commute but there are potential negative impacts on your life, and one of the biggest downsides I see of working from home is the fact that many of us struggle to fully switch off. Our work is our home, our home is our work, and the boundaries are blurred at best, or even non-existent. I want you to answer honestly Do you ever really fully, truly 100%, switch off from work? Are your emails on your phone instant messages? Are you just finishing off xyz in the evening after eating with your family, or even while eating? Are you putting the kids to bed and then firing back up the laptop, pretending you’re resting while watching tv? Are you half listening to your partner and half thinking about the thing you really should be getting done at work? I don’t think the solution is just about having better self-control. It’s about creating a new commute. This is a transition system that I’ve developed that helps your brain shift from work mode to personal mode so you can finally reclaim your evenings.

Speaker 1: 4:22

Let’s talk about some common work from home traps, because I guarantee you’re going to relate to at least one of these. Working remotely can sound like a total dream on paper. There’s no commute, no office distractions, full control of your schedule, probably, but somehow that extra flexibility often turns into never fully switching off. Here are some of the biggest traps remote workers fall into the just one more thing syndrome. This is when you keep working past your finish time because it’s just a quick task and suddenly an hour has passed and you’re still in work mode.

Speaker 1: 5:02

Another trap is having blurred boundaries with your family, your partner or kids. Assume that because you’re physically home, you’re available. You struggle to communicate when you’re actually done for the day. This can be hard both when you’re working and feel interrupted and when you’re not working but have one half of your brain still firmly in work. You might be feeling guilty for not being on at work. Since you’re not in a traditional office. There’s pressure to prove that you’re available, that you’re always available and not slacking, and some workplaces seem to actively encourage this. So you keep checking Slack, you respond to emails. You never truly disconnect. There can even be some smug pride for returning emails at 10, 11pm. I’ve been there A sense of how dedicated and hardworking you are. I am not disputing that at all. You are dedicated and hardworking. But all I’m saying is you can be just as dedicated and hardworking, but within boundaries.

Speaker 1: 6:04

Another trap is working from the sofa or bed. I get it. You’re working from home. You might not have a dedicated office space, but when your workspace blurs into your relaxation space, it makes it impossible to mentally switch off. I was having a conversation with family last weekend about this. I do sometimes work from bed. It is rare, maybe once a month. But if the kids are looked after and I’m having a slower morning, I’ll do a couple of hours. Then I’ll get up and shower and continue the rest of my work in my office. I wouldn’t like to make it a habit, as this blur of what the space is actually for can be difficult for our brains to then draw a line, to draw that boundary. But now and again it’s just a nice little perk. These traps can make work feel endless, and that’s where my system, the new commute, comes in.

Speaker 1: 6:56

Let’s talk about why transitions are so important for your brain. Our brains thrive on cues and triggers to shift between different mental states. Think about how we have bedtime routines to signal sleep. Our work days need transitions too. Studies show that people who create intentional wind-down routines experience lower stress level and better sleep quality, and we can apply the same to the shift between work and home. Without a clear transition, your brain stays stuck in work mode, keeping you in a mild state of stress. Think of your brain like a computer If you keep too many tabs open, everything slows down. So the new commute system helps you to close down mental tabs before moving into the next part of your day. Okay, we’re on to the system, the new commute, a simple system to mentally clock out.

Speaker 1: 7:51

Just because you don’t physically travel between work and home doesn’t mean you can’t create a transition for yourself. So you can have all the benefits of a commute, but without any of the downsides of traffic and stress and busyness and time. So here’s how to build your new commute and take back control in three steps. Step one is to identify what your old commute gave you or, if you still have a commute, what it does. So think back to when you had a commute at the end of the working day, or imagine one if you’ve never had one, and ask yourself what did commuting actually do for me? What were the positives? Was it a chance to decompress? Did it help you shift gears? Was it the only time you had for yourself in the day? Did you enjoy listening to music or an audiobook or podcast in the car or reading on the train? Was it an enforced full stop at the end of the day? The office closes at 5.30pm so you had to finish and had to leave. And because your work wasn’t portable, because you didn’t have a laptop, maybe to work from home, you knew work was done for the day. Think about what your commute could have given to you, because these answers will shape your new commute and what you need to get out of it.

Speaker 1: 9:19

So step two set a hard stop for your workday. This step is crucial for this system because if you don’t set a finish time, work will expand into your entire evening. Remember, like I said last week, it is a gas. It will expand to any space you give it. So decide when work is finished, put it into your calendar and stick to it. If you’re contracted to a certain number of hours, start there, you decide. There’s no right or wrong. You decide when work is finished. Put it in your calendar, stick to it. To help you stick to it, this is what I suggest to people Set an alarm for 30 minutes before you plan to finish.

Speaker 1: 9:57

This is your wind down warning, a cue to start wrapping up. Make sure that you never book meetings in during this precious 30 minutes. This is really important. When this alarm goes off, take a moment to think about all the open loops in your brain. Remember that zyganic effect where your brain doesn’t like open loops, so it keeps going over them. Let’s close as many as we can find. So the alarm goes off and you think about each unfinished task in turn. If it’s quick to close off, like, oh I just need to email John about that thing or I just need to read that document, that will take three minutes just do it. Close any loops you can. Anything that’s bigger and you can’t close in the next 30 minutes. Write it down so that your brain doesn’t hold onto it overnight. Put it on tomorrow’s to-do list or even for later in the week.

Speaker 1: 10:48

Close those mental loops one by one. The more you practice this, the more you will be able to identify those open loops quickly. I often. Just imagine that there’s little bits of string or thread kind of floating from my brain. These are all the open loops, these are all the tasks that I’m holding in my brain and all I do is I grab one and I either do it as I close it off or I pin it down to a to-do list. So I’m getting all those open loops and if you’re watching on YouTube, I’m literally reaching above my head, grabbing these open loops and pinning them down. That is closing them. If, during that evening or weekend, more open loops appear, maybe ones that you didn’t see before, pin them down too. So write them down to look at when you are next at work. I personally send myself emails or WhatsApp messages to my work phone, because then that gets that open loop out of my head. It closes, it puts a pin in it. Or have a note in your phone or a good old mini notebook you carry around with you. This is a great practice to get into, even on the days that you work at home to close all these open loops. Set that 30 minute timer, close the loops, pin them down and then you can fully transition to your next stage.

Speaker 1: 12:06

So step three is to create a closing ritual to signal to your brain that work is done. This is where you officially end your work day, just like stepping out of the office. You don’t need to carve as much time as the old commute needed, but it is important to find 15 minutes if you can, or even five to 10. If you have childcare responsibilities, try and finish work 10 minutes earlier. I promise you this is worth making the time and effort for, because if you do this well, you will be more fully with your family later on in the evening. You need to do the same thing each day, because that signifies to your brain that work is done for the day. Brains absolutely love predictability and routines. So it’s time to craft your new commute and you can recreate the benefits of the old commute that we spoke about in step one.

Speaker 1: 12:57

So if you used to like listening to a podcast, can you find 10-15 minutes to listen to one? How about combining it with a walk or some fresh air? If you liked being able to process your day in the car with a colleague or partner, how about giving someone a quick ring and having a little chat? Maybe make it part of the day for both of you If you miss having time to mentally unwind. Try a five minute walk or just some journaling. At the end of the workday you can change clothes to signify that it’s part of a new day, or play the same song each evening that calms you or revs you up for the evening. Maybe you could even have a dance in your kitchen. I won’t tell if you don’t. Even just taking five minutes with a cup of tea in a particular mug could be just the ticket.

Speaker 1: 13:44

So choose your perfect ritual and do the same thing every day. And in this I would also really recommend that you hide work for the day. So if you have your own space in your house like an office, like I do, I’m very lucky. Have that ready to come back the next day, give it a quick tidy and then go out and shut the door. If you work in your kitchen, can you have a box that you pack things away in and can slide it behind a cupboard or somewhere, just so it’s out of the way. If you work in your living room, same thing, just so that you’re not sat there relaxing in the evening and you can see your laptop and you can see your work stuff. Honestly, hiding things makes a big difference. These small actions train your brain to recognise that the workday is over. So that’s it. It’s quite a simple system, just three steps.

Speaker 1: 14:34

The new commute how do you feel about giving it a go? Step one is to identify what your old commute gave you. Step two is set that hard stop for the end of your workday, set the alarm for 30 minutes and close all the loops you can. Step three is to create this closing ritual to signal to your brain that work is done. Do the same thing every day. How about if one of your biggest challenges isn’t just switching off yourself but also making sure others respect your boundaries? For parents, you could set up a visual queue for when you’re working and when work is finished, like closing the office door or using a work over sign. Have a five minute family transition ritual, maybe a hug, a chat, dancing together, reading together. For your clients or your colleagues, you can set an auto responder for emails after hours and clearly state when they can expect to reply. Turn off work notifications on your phone so you aren’t tempted For housemates or partners. Have a signal that work is done, like changing clothes or playing that specific song. Create a buffer time before engaging in home conversations and if people are constantly interrupting your personal time with work, just repeat your boundary clearly and consistently. If this is a big shift and work makes a use to you responding at all hours, this may take some time to bed in. Just keep strong, keep consistent with your boundaries and you will see the benefits, as will your work, as you will be more productive after switching off and resting.

Speaker 1: 16:11

I worked with a client last year called Mike well, name changed, I’m calling him Mike in this. He worked from home three days a week and he was struggling with shutting off. He’d finished work but still check his emails while cooking dinner and find himself on the laptop again, getting frustrated with his family and himself at having one foot in work and one at home and being torn mentally. It was completely draining his energy. He felt like he never really left work and his productivity, his actual work output, despite working significantly more hours than contracted, was dropping. Hours than contracted was dropping. We built a simple new commute for him. He set a finish time for work, tied up, the loose ends packed away, work for the day, so he didn’t see his laptop or work things. Then he went for a five minute walk outside, no matter the weather, while listening to a feel good playlist. When he returned home he got changed and then he was fully in home mode and his family knew that as well. After two weeks of this he told me he was more present with his family and for the first time in ages he felt like his evenings were his again. He was also getting more of the important stuff done at work Total win-win.

Speaker 1: 17:27

So your challenge this week is I’d like you to try creating your own new commute. Step one think about the benefits of a commute or what it used to do for you. Step two set a hard stop when you’re finishing work. Try setting an alarm 30 minutes before and start creating that habit of tying off all the open loops by doing those quick tasks or jotting them down for the next day. Step three create your own ritual for the signal to your brain that the workday is done and start implementing it. Try something for a few days and tweak it until it is just right for you.

Speaker 1: 18:01

Tell me what you’ve got up to. I love hearing from you. I reply to every email, every DM. I absolutely love hearing what works for you. How are you feeling about the prospect of creating a new commute. Are you feeling excited, relieved, nervous? There’s no right or wrong way to feel. Explore why you’re feeling it and use that to make change that works for you. So on to next week. We’re going to be talking about the power of smart decision making and why sometimes not making a decision is actually the most productive thing you can do. Hit subscribe so you don’t miss it. And until next time, stay productive, stay energized and keep living with zest.