Where Are You Eating Your Lunch?

Just like their counterparts in the corporate world, many people who work from home eat lunch at their desk.

I’ve done it. Wendy’s done it. And it’s likely, if you have a home office, that you’ve done it as well.

Yeah, I know how the lyrics to this song goes: “I’m just eating so I can get a little work done while I’m feeding my face. That way I can get even more done in the day.” Ever hear yourself thinking that one?

So, is the reason you work from home so that you could sit at your desk and eat your lunch – alone…while sun warms the earth and the birds sing their little songs? Do you really think you’re more productive because you spend your lunch in front of the computer?

The truth is, it’s likely you’re not more productive, but less so, when you spend your lunch time at your desk. How could this be so? Well, first, you never work as effectively or efficiently when  you’re doing more than one task at a time. Eating is one task. Checking email, browsing the web, blogging, catching up on social media, building a spreadsheet, writing a proposal, designing a logo – all these are separate, individual tasks. you wouldn’t write a proposal while you’re checking email – so why would you combine eating with any of these?

Yet, efficiency isn’t the key. I’ve worked over some lunches, lightly snacking on my food while I focus greatly on finishing some project for a deadline. I’ve gotten work done doing it that way. But I do know that I’m simply not as effective as when I am only focused on the project.

The key is quality of life. More directly – quality of your business life.

If you’re working from home, it’s because you want too. Whether you’re a entrepreneur, a small business owner or working remote, you’re working from your home office because you can be. If this is true, stop and ask  yourself, “Why did I want to work from home?”

I’m going to guess that you’re not going to site reasons like, “so I could work at eat lunch at the same time.”

For most of us, working from home has something to do with the quality of our life. We think of working at home, we think of freedom, space, relaxed work environment, flexibility and things like that. Yet, are we living those qualities in the work we do? That’s the real question.

So I suggest eating your lunch away from your desk – and if you can, away from your office. Go outside and enjoy the seasons. Eat lunch in the sun or under a tree. Sit, taste your food, chew it slowly and think about something other than work. Doesn’t matter what it is, just get your mind out of work. Feel the warmth of the sun, breathe the air – take deep, belly-full breaths and even close your eyes for a few moments and just relax (don’t fall asleep, though). Feel your feet or buttocks on the ground and just be present. Don’t worry about work – it’ll all the there when you return.

I do this almost daily. Yeah, the work-at-my-desk bug still gets me from time to time. But it’s seldom these days. I make my lunch a time to recharge and focus on living, rather than working. I take time to taste my food and feel my feet. All this helps me remember why I work so hard in the first place.

And if I want the biggest dose of why I work, I have lunch with my wife and kids. I get out of the office, sit down with my family and we all eat lunch together. In the warm months, we might make a picnic in the backyard under a tree for half an hour. Or we might sit under the porch while it’s raining and listen to the rain and talk and laugh. These times are special to me and to the kids. They remember daddy eating lunch with them – and I them. And I remember that they won’t be little forever (my oldest is 4) so I should cherish these times while I can.

Because I work from home, I can.

Where do you eat your lunch?