The term work-life balance has been bandied about since the 1970’s. I think the term life balance is more appropriate because work is part of our whole lives as are our homes, relationships and fulfilling our own additional ambitions.
Many people spend more time at work than they do at home and more time with work colleagues than with friends and family so work is a huge part of their lives.
Work is fast becoming the way in which we define ourselves. It is now answering some of the traditional questions like “Who am I?” and “How do I find meaning and purpose in my life?” Work is no longer just about economics; it’s about identity. About fifty years ago, people had many sources of identity: religion, class, nationality, political affiliation, family roots, geographical and cultural origins and more. Today, many of these, if not all, have been superseded by work.
An alarming amount of absenteeism in the workplace is now stress-related and it is clear that problems caused by stress have become a major concern to both employers and employees. Symptoms are manifested both physiologically and psychologically.
It is now more important than ever that people learn to manage their lives so that they create a better balance and reduce unnecessary stress, which in turn will promote better long-term health and wellbeing.
The idea of life balance is further complicated by the fact that today’s workforce is more culturally diverse and also made up of different generations, each with its own set of priorities. Additionally, businesses are in various stages of their own life cycles. Instead of looking for a generic, standardised concept of life, we need to understand that it is our own responsibility to make sure that we implement personal strategies that help us to get a better perspective on how we can better balance our time and energy.
Here are a few tips on how you can achieve a better balance
Get up and get going – This is such a good way to start the day. You will give yourself that extra bit of time and the more positively you start your day the better you will feel. In the chapter on healthy living we covered “Refusing the Snooze”. It really does work wonders!
Create thinking time – Thinking time is very important and in the fast paced world in which we live in sometimes we don’t feel we have time to schedule in thinking. We need to factor this time in however and slow down and reflect
occasionally or stop and take stock and amend plans. It is a false perception that you don’t have time to stop and think. You need to do this to save time!
Set yourself limits – Setting yourself personal limits is a useful thing to do at work or can be applied to anything else that you tend to do too much of. If you work ten to twelve hour days, for example, set a limit of eight hours per day, and stick to it. Just learn to work smarter and manage your time better and be realistic about what you can achieve in the time scale.
Plan time with family and friends – Plan and literally diarise time for your partner, friends, children or other family members. This may sound a bit regimented, however it will ensure that you don’t end up neglecting those who are most important to you. Be very disciplined then not to let people down. So schedule time with them on a regular basis to do something together.
Develop new interests and hobbies – You are never too old to learn something new and there is just so much out there that you could do. It is really important with all the demands that you have in your life that you increase quality time to invest in yourself and your own personal development.
Manage mobile technology – Whilst mobile technology can be very useful it has one of the biggest impacts on our lives simply because it is so intrusive. If you are constantly at the beck and call of your phone then the chances are, even when you think you are spending time with your family, in reality you really are not because you simply are not present with them!
Take holidays – All work and no play. Need I say more? Holidays are the very best way to relax, de stress and recharge. It is really important to take the holidays that you are entitled to.
One other important thing to really consider is the distinction between work and home and to be aware of the negativities that we can potentially carry between the two. If you are not careful, it can become a bad habit that, at the end of each busy day, you offload to our partners all our moans and groans about our work day, thus infecting our home lives with the stress of work. A good habit to get into is to spend time at the end of each day sharing your achievements and successes and focusing on the positive outcomes of the day.
Work and home life are equally important, and the key to happiness is about finding the right balance so you can get the best and the most out of both of them.
“When people go to work, they shouldn’t have to leave their hearts at home.”
Betty Bender