After a couple of months of working from home, many professionals started to nail down new routines and new strategies to stay productive. That’s not to say it was easy. But as adaptable professionals, many of us have managed to make working from home work. As it becomes more normal to us though, we may notice new challenges cropping up. One such challenge is a lack of inspiration. There can be countless causes for this. Maybe you have too much on your plate, maybe you don’t have enough, maybe stress is taking a real toll on you, or you simply miss being surrounded by coworkers. Whatever the reason, let’s take a look at several strategies that can help:

Read

Picking up a new book is a great way to keep your mind engaged. Maybe there’s a particular area of your work where you could use a boost, or maybe you just need some general motivation. Whether the book is specifically work related or not, it can still have positive effects. Diving into something you’d like to learn more about can be energizing. It might give you a new marketing idea, a new way to look at a challenge, or a new goal to set for yourself. Even if it’s only for a small window of time, striving to read daily can help keep that motivation going.

Listen

Sitting down with a book isn’t the only way to learn new information while working from home. Podcasts, TedTalks, and other audio resources are all great ways for professionals to stay inspired. Maybe you listen to your favorite podcast on your afternoon walk, or perhaps you have a line-up of TedTalks you’re planning to tune into. Sometimes hearing the excitement and passion of others around subjects that interest you can be just the spark you need to get inspired.

Connect

Just because you aren’t physically surrounded by your coworkers doesn’t mean you can’t connect with them. As I’ve mentioned in past posts, staying connected is important. Whether it’s talking through new ideas, sharing struggles, or exchanging resources, regularly connecting with your coworkers can provide a feeling of solidarity to support your inspiration.

Disconnect

Though it might seem counter intuitive, making time to disconnect can be essential for feelings of inspiration. Yes, looking to outside resources and staying connected to our colleagues are important, but we also need to ensure we’re balancing that with time to rest and reflect. Sometimes too much screen-time can make us feel exhausted and drained. Ensure you’re giving yourself some time to disconnect and recharge. That can help us get into a better frame of mind to get and stay inspired.

How have you been staying inspired while working from home? Have you noticed a change in inspiration since shifting to remote work? What have been your biggest challenges? I’d love to hear your thoughts.