Is Your Work Commute Affecting Your Productivity?
Have you ever had ‘one of those days’ that just doesn’t get off to a good start? You rush out the door, forget your jacket, get absolutely soaked — and suddenly your whole day is ruined. We’ve all been there. But, what if you had one of those days almost everyday and you simply became so used to it that it began to feel normal? Well, that’s what can happen when you face a lengthy commute into work on a daily basis.
The average travel time to work in the US is 25.4 minutes each way; that’s not so bad, right? Well, it depends how you look at it. That’s over 50 minutes taken out of your day and about 204 hours a year spent on your work commute. And that figure can rise substantially to over 60 minutes each way in various parts of the US.
Although it’s something that you will often believe that you’ve adapted to, your commute can have serious repercussions on your well-being and productivity in the long-run. In fact, a study by Kronos Inc. revealed that over 500,000 American employees have called into work sick because they couldn’t face the commute. If that’s not a productivity killer, I don’t know what is.
The Ideal Scenario: Commuting By Foot Or Bike
Researchers at the University of East Anglia discovered that walking or cycling to work actually improves your well-being. So if you can’t walk or cycle the whole way to work, why not cycle to the train station or walk to the next bus stop?
Lead researcher in the study, Adam Martin, said that; ‘Our study shows that the longer people spend commuting in cars, the worse their psychological well-being. And correspondingly, people feel better when they have a longer walk to work.’
The study also revealed that taking public transport to work had a better psychological effect than driving. And something worth noting about the public transport option is that it’s much easier to use that time productively; if you want to get some work done, you can whip out your mobile or laptop on the train and get 30 minutes in before you hit the office. This is largely what makes Buckets so useful; you can access your work files and collaborate with your colleagues anytime, from anywhere.
The Key Culprit: Commuting By Car
A 2012 study in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine revealed that a lengthy commute can adversely affect both cardiovascular and metabolic functioning. The majority (86%!) of American workers drive to work, and this form of commute actually has the most devastating affect on productivity and health.
People who have to sit in a car commuting every day are more sedentary as a result, and this leads to an increase in both body weight and blood pressure — neither of which are good for your general health. It makes sense when you think about it; we lead busy lives, and the time you spend commuting can often eat up any free time you have to exercise. It’s very easy to fall into the trap of ‘I’m too tired to hit the gym’ in the morning when you have a long drive ahead of you.
If you have to drive to work each day (and many people don’t have a choice), there are a few things you can do to combat the impact this has on your physical and mental well-being.
- Practice relaxation exercises: You clearly can’t start throwing yoga poses in your front seat, but you can incorporate some breathing exercises into your daily drive so that you arrive to work relaxed and refreshed (especially if you’re a bit of a road rage warrior!).
- Download a podcast: Why not learn something when you’re stuck in traffic? Check out Buckets Top 10 Productivity Podcasts to get you started.
- Put on some chilled out music and look at the trip as as your ‘downtime’ between work and home.
- Wear comfortable clothing: Swap those dress shoes for trainers and get comfy!
- Carpool! Save your productivity levels and the environment by teaming up with your colleagues and friends to take a break from sitting behind the wheel.
If you start practicing these tips and learn to embrace your commute, you may actually begin to enjoy it — and become more productive in the process!
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