Balance has always been something that’s been sought after. Whether it’s in the politics of the world, or on a less macro scale, what you do in a day. This feat has become more arduous since the beginning of quarantine as there’s less divide.
Instead of having to go to your physical workplace or school, you now make the short trip to your desk. Probably within the same room, but certainly in the same house. This makes it harder for us to separate and balance these different aspects of our lives as the psychological divide between the two is almost non-existent. This has to do with the way memories are stored in the brain and results in each place being associated with an activity or mood.
To add balance, and harness the way you innately store memories, creating well-defined spaces for each activity is a good start. Even with this, you might find yourself either working more than you normally would or nowhere near the amount you used to. If you’re the former, you can try time blocking and avoiding doing too much – I set a rule for myself that I wouldn’t study after 7pm and that anything I do after that had to be personal or relaxing. If you’re the latter, just put in the hours if they’re needed. Having some sort of routine may also help as you’ll get used to doing a specific activity at different times of the day.
In the unlikely event all these fail, it’s worth taking some time out to consider why they didn’t work. It could help you avoid burnout or keep you accountable. Either way, there’s really no downside to having balance.