These days we stay at home. Staying at home today is not by choice but it is necessary if you do not really really need to go out. And I stayed at home because I can. Once every two weeks, I go out for necessary tasks, and I stayed at home.
How is my life? Is staying at home a good thing or a bad thing? I thought about what has changed, what could have been better, and what are the advantages.
Before listing all the changes in my daily routines, I would like to say how thankful I am. Today I am very thankful that I am healthy, and I can stay at home and still keep my job. I know that I am among the most fortunate people in this world. Many people are fighting for their health, and many doctors and health employees are working around the clock to cure people while putting their own lives in danger. Many people serve today to us in grocery, logistics, textile sector to support us to stay at home. There are many people out there who work. Thank you all for your efforts. I wish everyone healthful days.
Cook, Clean, Repeat
While I was working in the office, I mostly did not cook. I was waking up at 6:15 am, and I was coming back to home at 7:00 pm. II worked 5 days within a week. Sometimes I was working overtime from home or at the office.
This routine did not allow me to take care of my home.I used to pay for a housework service once a week. During weekdays I used to have my breakfast and lunch at the office. In the evening, we were ordering takeouts.
Today, while staying at home and working at home, I have more time for myself. I start working at 8:00 am, which means waking up at 7:45 am is completely fine. My work is over when it is 5 pm, and I am free afterward. So much time has been saved. However, I cannot get housework services. Also, I cannot eat at the office, and I do not prefer ordering take-outs. So I need to cook for all the meals. So some of the saved time is consumed by cooking and cleaning. On the bright side, the housework creates physical activity. Thankfully, we share this work with my husband. 🙂
Staying at Home, Working from Home
I am a white-collar worker in a corporate company’s headquarter. Almost six months ago my company decided to move its operations to another office. My travel time to work had been only 1hour per day before moving. After moving, travel time increased to 2.5-3 hours per day. Most of my colleagues had the same situation. After the company’s home-office decision, we all experienced that we started working more efficient. We sleep well, we are exposed to less noise, we finish the meetings early, we can shorten our lunch breaks if we have too much work. And we all realized that working from home multiple days a week may be an option for the future.
Working from home also requires too many virtual meetings. If you would like to read some tips about virtual meetings during this stage, you can also read Virtual Meetings – Go Virtual post.
Ticking off the To-Do List
While I was away from home due to work or other outdoor activities, I used to think that I need more time to complete my to-do list such as; writing blogs, reading books, working on new projects, improving the old projects, learning new things, etc.
I started to complete them, but my completion pace is not matching my expectations. Even though I earned time by staying at home, I also lost time by cleaning and cooking.
Moreover, I realized that I have more urge for socializing than before. I realized that I am calling and texting to my parents and friends more often. Mostly conversations are longer than before.
I guess like everyone I too get used to a comfortable life quite easily. Rather than working full time for my to-do-list, I spend some of my leisure time by spending watching TV series and movies. I am glad that I can spend more time with my husband. I believe this became a time for slowing down a bit, and maybe we need to slow down.
Staying at Home Hobbies and Activities
We have more leisure time for ourselves than before. So what do I do? I am not doing anything different such as baking bread. But I try to fill my life with good hobbies.
I recently found a mobile application called Yoga for Beginners. My purpose was wellbeing and relaxing the muscles a bit. This app has short and simple routines. If you are looking for a simple daily exercise, you may probably like this app.
I thought it might be a good idea to do puzzles. I do not have puzzles at my house. Because I and my husband both work home office, we need all the space in our home. However, puzzles are good for coping with waiting. The task is challenging, but you can observe the progress, and you can complete it.
Besides doing yoga, I do not do anything new. I am still trying to complete my long to-do-list. (working on new projects, reading, learning, blogging).
Feeling Alone or Not?
Normally, while working in the office, we are surrounded by our colleagues. Even if you work as home-office, you could go to meet-ups and events to socialize. Besides, we all can always go out and meet with family, friends, or strangers. Today, we should obey the physical distancing rules to protect our community and ourselves from the disease.
All of us struggled at some point while getting used to this temporary new normal. However, because we all are struggling, we started to support each other.
I realized that the frequency of phone calls increased with family and friends. When we call each other, we tend to speak and listen longer than before. Also, when we have a call conference with our colleagues, we tend to make the small talk a bit longer.
I have not attended yet, but I realize that there are many webinars and online events. There are many great opportunities to meet new people and growing your network. Usually, you had to join those events physically, and mostly you couldn’t.Because the event may be conducted in a place away from your home or your work. Today, you can join those events from anywhere in the world with no effort.
Lowering Expectations
We expect from life so much, don’t we? Today, we have discovered the difference between what we need and what we want. So what do we need?
We need to make money. We need to buy food, hygiene, and cleaning products. We need to pay the rent and utilities. Besides those, we mostly do not need much, but we want them for better living standards.
Today, like many people, I focus on what I need. I buy what I need, and I try to buy less frequently than before. I widened my options on brands, because all the products may not be available in the supermarket. I both save money for future uncertainties and contribute to physical distancing.
How Do You Cope with Staying at Home?
Today, I am okay with staying at home. I feel okay, I do not feel anxious, and I adapted to this new normal. So, how do you feel? What do you do while staying at home? What are your suggestions to make these days better? Write to me in comments sections so any reader in this post could have a brighter day with your suggestions.
If you feel depressed or anxious, please do not lose your hope but consider taking action. It is good to get professional help when needed. I believe these days, psychologists may consider conducting online consultations.
If you feel that coping with uncertainty is hard, know that it is hard for everyone. Waiting is hard. Maybe my blogpost “Coping with the Stress of Waiting” might help you to understand why it is hard to wait, and how to change our perception to cope with the stress of waiting. I am not a psychologist, but I wondered why waiting is hard. I researched it and shared my findings with references.
I wish everyone to have a very good and healthy day.