The Daily “Commute” You Really Need

Recently, I was tuned in to a podcast called, “The School of Greatness” with Lewis Howes by my good friend Leah - Hi,👋🏼 Leah! 

The episode’s guest was Dr. Guy Winch, a renowned clinical psychologist & author (also a wonderful podcast voice BTW), and their topic was, “How to Detach From Work Before It Destroys Your Life”. It’s a relatively longer podcast that I broke up over the course of a few days but the excerpt that struck me was about creating rituals to psychologically detach from work. 

During the pandemic and like so many, I was told that we’d be working from home for the foreseeable future. So, I’d be home…with my then toddler Holden…and pregnant with Asha…working. 🫠😅 (Tangent - I’ve just realized the pandemic broke out 6+ years ago! It feels like it was 3 years ago…but I digress). 

Early on, I realized the line between work and home had vanished. My workday bled far beyond the usual 9-to-5, and my mind never truly shut off. This constant overlap created unnecessary stress that eventually snowballed into burnout.

I fell into the trap of poor habits, too. I traded my old driving commute for early morning emails, starting my day long before 9AM. By evening, my "commute" was just closing my laptop, yet my mind would spin for hours over pending deadlines or difficult co-workers. I’d spend my night replaying fictitious arguments instead of actually clocking out and being present with my family. I needed a way to break the cycle.

What this podcast reminded me of, was a “commute” ritual I’d built for myself after I realized I needed a transitional timeframe to get out of work “fight or flight” and detach psychologically because your workday doesn’t just end when you shut your laptop, it ends when you stop thinking about work.

A SCIENCE-BACKED SOLUTION TO TRY: 

✨Incorporate an easily repeatable ritual that will train your mind over time to shift out of work mode and into a relaxed mode whether you travel, work in an office or remote.

✨Consider incorporating as many of the 5 senses as you can without getting too complicated. Aim for 15-20 mins if you can or build up to this. 

✨Below is a blend from what I used and what Dr. Winch recommends:

• 🔊Sound: 

  • Music - your fav playlist or ambient noises

  • A podcast on something non-work related

  • A walk in nature to listen to the sounds around you

• 👘Touch/Feeling/Taste: 

  • Your clothes - change out of your work close when you get home. Even if you work in casual clothes, have different casual clothes for after work. 

  • Take a shower or bath if you can

  • A warm cup of herbal tea. Feel the weight of the cup and the warmth, sip it slowly and intentionally - not looking at your phone but maybe reading a book, magazine, or just staring out into the world around you. 

• 👀Sight: 

  • Change the lighting when you get home or transition from your “work environment”. 

  • If you work on a screen all day (which most of us do) try very hard not to use a screen for your transition as you’ve just been using them for the past 8 hours and your brain won’t recognize the difference. 

• 🗓️Calendaring: Your brain takes this seriously at work so schedule your end of day “commute” saying something like, “Time to veg out”, “Time to relax”, “Family Time” - whatever will trigger your mind to take this “task” seriously like an appointment. 

Everyone is bio-individual so try a small combo of these and test and learn to see what works for your mental “commute” - whether you work in an office or remote. 

It won’t happen overnight, but within a week or two, you’ll train your brain to recognize these signals to detach. Just like our kid's “bath, book, bed” routine, you’re signaling to your system that it’s finally time to calm down and rest.

📧 Hit 'reply' to this email or shoot me a text if you're trying this! Or tell me about your own ritual you've already implemented, if you have one. 

With Grit & Grace, 

Ashley