
Frantically performing task after task keeps our minds off what’s stressing us, but doesn’t actually deal with it. When we think that sprinting all the time is the default mode of work, chances are most work isn’t productive. Productivity requires work, but not all work is productive. So long as we’ve always got our nose to the grindstone, we’re being productive, right?

When the voice in our head tells us we’re not doing enough, we think that doing more will help silence it, and so we sprint every day. When we’re anxious – activity feels good. Forget About SprintingĪctivity and productivity are not the same thing. Whether it be a personal ritual or simple time boundaries in your journal, finding ways to create and reinforce the boundaries between work and life cultivates the mental health needed to be truly productive. Rest and relaxation are required for productivity. This is why learning to stop working is such an important part of productivity. With poor mental health, we’re incapable of being productive, leading to more guilt and a consistent sense of exhaustion. When we can’t differentiate work time from personal time, all time suddenly feels like ‘work’ and mental health dissolves. Things that would help you relax or have fun can suddenly inspire guilt as you feel you should be working.

When you’re working from home, ‘quitting time’ isn’t clear, and work time invades personal time. Whether we had gotten a little or a lot done at the office, ‘quitting time’ gave us what we needed to psychologically transition from ‘work’ to ‘home’ mode. Working at the office, 9-5 hours gave us ready-made boundaries for ‘work’. If you’re like most who have transitioned to working from home, this can be extraordinarily difficult. Learn to Stop Workingĭo you know when to ‘hang up your hat’ when you’re working at home? To be truly productive at home, we’ve got to rethink what productivity means and understand how we can work in a healthy way. Let these ideas sit unexamined, and they can have a corrosive impact on not only your productivity but also your mental health.

Consciously or not, you’ve probably brought home a range of potentially harmful ideas about what work should look like. If you’ve gone from managing members at an office to managing members at home – chances are your computer isn’t the only thing that’s come with you. The norms, expectations, and ideas of work culture are undergoing a massive shift – and the change is impacting everybody. Over the last months, the meaning of work has been turned upside down.
