Speaker 1: Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the New Corner Office,
Speaker 1: the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the
Speaker 1: new world of work, where the location and ours are
Speaker 1: more flexible than in the past. Today's tip is to
Speaker 1: have a project outside of work, or, as the kids
Speaker 1: like to tell us, to get a life. Work goes
Speaker 1: better and it is less stressful when we do something
Speaker 1: besides work for part of the day. For those who
Speaker 1: are parents as well as professionals, and outlet beyond work
Speaker 1: and family can make us feel like whole, happier people.
Speaker 1: Hobbies and projects outside of work also keep us balanced
Speaker 1: and interesting. This is especially true if you have the
Speaker 1: sort of job that lacks a hard stop or start,
Speaker 1: and where work can quickly bleed into all available hours.
Speaker 1: I first discovered the wisdom of having projects outside of
Speaker 1: work back when I was twenty three years old and
Speaker 1: first started working from home full time. My roommate back
Speaker 1: then disappeared for a month long work trip, and I
Speaker 1: soon realized that there was nothing to keep the days
Speaker 1: from blending into each other. This was before the days
Speaker 1: of video conferencing. I'm pretty sure I still had a
Speaker 1: dial up internet connection there for a while. So there
Speaker 1: was no reason to get dressed. I also had the
Speaker 1: disconcerting thought that without any formal, time specific commitments, my
Speaker 1: friends might not notice if anything happened to me for
Speaker 1: a while. So, since I've always loved singing, I auditioned
Speaker 1: for and joined three choirs. Soon enough. On Monday's, Tuesdays
Speaker 1: and Thursdays I had summer, I was supposed to be
Speaker 1: around seven pm. This meant I had to quit work
Speaker 1: around six or six fifteen to get ready and traveled
Speaker 1: to rehearsals. That quitting time provided a lot of structure
Speaker 1: to my weeks, and it made me more efficient. If
Speaker 1: I knew i'd just work or half work and half
Speaker 1: served the web until ten pm, there was no reason
Speaker 1: to get going on anything. Knowing that anything do the
Speaker 1: next day had to be done by six pm made
Speaker 1: me a lot more focused. Since then, I've recommended coming
Speaker 1: up with a non work evening commitment to all sorts
Speaker 1: of folks who work from home. People who have kids
Speaker 1: might naturally have a stopping point to their days, at
Speaker 1: least in normal times you have to pick up the
Speaker 1: kids at daycare or send your sitter home, But people
Speaker 1: without these constraints need to come up with something else,
Speaker 1: and so joining a softball team or volunteering at a
Speaker 1: food bank once a week might serve the same function.
Speaker 1: These commitments give you a reason to clock out and
Speaker 1: have an engaging life outside of work. Of course, these days,
Speaker 1: many activities are on a hiatus. That's six thirty pm
Speaker 1: spin class or an eight pm book club or five
Speaker 1: thirty pm volunteer shift at the library. Can no longer
Speaker 1: tell you if it's time to stop work, so we
Speaker 1: have to set our own rhythms for pursuing projects. Maybe
Speaker 1: you remind yourself six p m. Is when I go
Speaker 1: for a walk, or six pm is when I start
Speaker 1: my daily project of cooking through the joy of cooking.
Speaker 1: In warmer parts of the US, now is a great
Speaker 1: time of year to plant a little garden, So maybe
Speaker 1: you'll want to clock out early enough to get a
Speaker 1: good chunk of time in your garden before sunset. Maybe
Speaker 1: you can pick up a craft you used to enjoy,
Speaker 1: or read all the works of George Elliott. Whatever your
Speaker 1: particular interests, you'll be happier and more productive if you
Speaker 1: do something besides work and worry. When you get a life,
Speaker 1: you enjoy life more if you're working from home. What
Speaker 1: lets you know when it's time to end your work day.
Speaker 1: Do you have a project that makes your days richer
Speaker 1: and more rewarding. I'd love to hear about it. You
Speaker 1: can reach me at Laura at Laura Vanderkim dot com.
Speaker 1: In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and
Speaker 1: here's to succeeding in the New Corner Office. The New
Speaker 1: Corner Office is a production of I Heart Radio. For
Speaker 1: more podcasts, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,
Speaker 1: or wherever you get your favorite shows. H