People could keep making money without having to waste resources on lengthy commutes, after all, and get away from the omnipresent observation of the modern office. As you’d expect, introverts were particularly proficient at finding the silver lining in the cloud.

But things changed as the weeks and months went by, as emergency measures that had initially been trivialized as short-lived necessities didn’t go away with the time. Lockdown restrictions remained in place, and the magnitude of the change became apparent. Remote working wasn’t just something to endure for a week or two. It was the new foundation of modern business.

As this set in, the downsides of working from home became hard to ignore. The isolation and tedium (along with the anxiety and stress inherent to living in such challenging times) started to weigh on people, leading them to become negative and cynical. And at this point, over a year since the first lockdown, spirits are greatly strained.

To combat the stresses of working from home, we need to change the way we think and approach life. More specifically, we need to build positive mindsets — but how can you actually get that done? Here are five tips for cultivating a productive change to your mindset:

Focus on your general wellbeing

There are many reasons why someone can feel morose and directionless, and working in an arrangement they don’t like is just one of them. If you’re feeling negative on a given day, it might largely (or solely) be due to your physical and/or mental health. If you don’t exercise for a long time, for instance, you can forget how important those endorphins are — and if you don’t work on your mental health, you can allow your insecurities and worries to overwhelm you.

Now more than ever before, you must make a commitment to self-love: some kind of promise to yourself to help remind you that you’re worthwhile and need to treat yourself well as a matter of priority. The better you feel about yourself, the better you’ll feel about everything else. Your prospects, your relationships, and certainly your work will benefit substantially.

Make the most of online comms

Talking to people online isn’t as satisfying as talking to them in person, and it likely never will be, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth your time and effort. Whether you’re arranging some Zoom meetings with your friends or just catching up through instant messaging, don’t let your relationships wither away due to your isolation.

Remember how far you’ve come

When you’re feeling like things never work out, remember that plenty of things have worked out for you to get to this point. How many times in your life have you felt totally hopeless? How many times have you looked at the paths ahead of you and been convinced that there’s nothing good lying in wait? And how many times have your expectations been accurate? Probably not that many. Most crises that feel insurmountable turn out to be entirely surmountable.

You’ve made it to this point because you’re stronger than you think, and you can make it through this horrible time even if you don’t believe in yourself — but believing in yourself will make it easier to endure the daily grind, so keep reminding yourself of your achievements.

Accept that you’ll have bad days

No matter what you do or how hard you try, you’ll have bad days. It’s utterly inevitable. You can do everything right (maintain a healthy diet, get a lot of exercise, meditate, sleep well, etc.) and still wake up feeling miserable from time to time. Due to this, you need to ensure that you don’t dwell on those days or conclude that you’re responsible. Just wait for them to pass, don’t make any rash decisions, and you’ll probably feel better soon after.

Pursue clear short-term goals

People need wins to grow their confidence. If you haven’t had a win for a while, you can start to question your ability — but how do you conjure up a win when you’re feeling so inept? It’s simple: you start small and go from there. By setting and nailing some clear short-term goals, you can prove to yourself that you can get things done, and get back into the habit of acting.

You could aim to clean your house by a particular date, for instance, or to get a certain amount of work done in a particular workday. It doesn’t really matter what the goals are: just that they’re worth doing and will leave you feeling better about yourself when they’re finished.