Remember when working from home first became a thing - and people would sing out about how it was going to transform our work-life balance? This immediately painted a picture of more time with the kids and time spent catching up with friends rather than commuting. What they didn’t tell us is that this working model means that we’re going to be connected to our work all ... the ... time ...
The thing is, when your work is just a couple of clicks away, lots of people simply
don’t know how to switch off - quite literally. These days, many of us are accessing our work stuff on our phones or the same laptop we use for doing our grocery shopping which means that boundaries are being not so much blurred as obliterated. This can quickly lead to burnout as well as damaging personal relationships so, in this article, we’re sharing our ten strategies for gaining a better work-life balance.
What Does A Real Work-Life Balance Look Like?
First off, this is unlikely to be a 50 / 50 deal. Real life is messy and there’ll be times when work will demand more of our day than others. This is more about finding a groove that works for you and which is sustainable. This can be as simple as:
- Setting yourself boundaries; i.e. the laptop goes off - and stays off - by dinner time
- Taking lunch breaks; these don’t have to be a full hour as even 15 minutes can help to recharge your batteries
- Giving personal pursuits the same kind of priority as you would a HR meeting
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As we all know, Dolly’s nine to five is a way to make a living that is no longer always realistic - but it’s still important to remember that your time is precious; and that not all of it belongs to your employer.
Why it matters: The benefits of achieving balance
Somewhere along the way we started thinking of time out as a luxury - and one that we can rarely afford. In reality, achieving a decent balance is vital for a
healthy, meaningful life and can help you get more out of both your professional and personal lives through:
Better health
As human beings, we’re not built to work relentlessly and doing so can result in chronic stress, poor nutrition and sleep issues - all of which chips away at our energy and wellbeing. Giving our bodies and minds a chance to rest and refuel is key to keeping us healthy and engaged with all aspects of our lives.
More productivity and creativity
But, the more you work, the more you achieve, right? Wrong. Grinding away when physically or mentally exhausted makes you less productive and more prone to making errors - which in turn, produces more work. Not only does rest improve our productivity but giving our brains a break allows room for those creative juices to flow.
Stronger relationships
I have a friend whose husband once threatened to throw her laptop into the ocean. Why? Because they were on holiday but, instead of enjoying the beach with her hubby, she was checking her emails. Just like our work, our relationships need to be nurtured and this can only be achieved by spending quality time together.
10 Proven Strategies to Improve Work-Life Balance
So, you get the drift of why achieving a balance is so important - it's now time to put it into practice; and this is how it’s done:
1. Set clear work boundaries
Where possible, your work life and your personal life should live in different places. Even if you don’t have an actual home office, you should designate a space for work and, at the end of your working day, physically leave that space as well as hitting the red button on your laptop.
2. Prioritize your physical and mental health
Our bodies are meant to move and so it’s important to get that blood flowing by taking a short walk or doing some stretching exercises. Stress-busting activities such as yoga and deep breathing don’t take a huge amount of time and can make a real difference. You also need to make sure that you fuel the machine by eating properly - if you don’t have time to have a proper meal during the work day, keep some high energy snacks like nuts and fruits to hand.
3. Learn to say “no” without the guilt
“But if I say no, I’ll appear unprofessional or unhelpful!” Sound familiar? This is something that lots of people struggle with and it really is half past time we change that.
If you don’t have the time or it’s not your job, it’s perfectly fine to politely say no now and again in order to preserve your time for more pressing matters.
4. Prioritize tasks with intention
Start your working day by
identifying your top priorities - by listing tasks by importance and urgency (and by doing away with all that constant checking of emails), you can reduce stress and become more organised. Tools such as time blocking and priority matrices can help get you started here.
5. Upskill for smarter - not harder - working
Far from cheating, finding new tools and shortcuts to streamline your work is an efficient way of getting the job done while clawing back some valuable time for yourself.
6. Take advantage of flexibility
It may sound like stating the "bleeding obvious" but it's always a good idea to explore and take advantage of benefits on offer to you such as flexitime or remote working. By doing this, you can design your days to better suit your needs and get more out of your time.
7. Outsource or delegate where possible
Think you have to do it all? Think again. Often, we get stressed because we’re simply taking on waaaaay too much unnecessarily. Do you really have to do that task yourself or can you delegate? Do you really need to go to the supermarket or can you book a delivery? Get smart with your time and energy and look at ways in which you can lighten the load.
8. Practice digital detox
While this one might give you a nervous twitch, it’s a great way of giving your brain a break. These days we have a Pavlovian reaction to those notification pings and these keep us on alert and increase stress. Get into the habit of having a couple of screen-free (and ping-free) hours every day for better focus, productivity and creativity as well as better quality sleep.
9. Schedule a little “me” time every day
“Me” time is valuable and should be treated like a commodity - we’re not saying that you have to book a spa break every day but, spending half an hour on gardening, reading or having a coffee with a friend can provide a vital rest and reset for mind, body and soul.
10. Ditch the bad habits that disrupt your balance
When we’re under pressure or stressed, we tend to sometimes compensate by rewarding ourselves with things that are neither productive or healthy. These can form
habits like excessive drinking or mindless scrolling on social media which drain our time and energy. Be mindful of the things that you do as an “escape” and get rid of bad habits in order to get better control of your time.
Conclusion
Rather than setting rigid boundaries, achieving a work-life balance is about finding a rhythm that works for you, your work and your family. Once you’re moving to your own beat, the balance will follow organically. So, ditch those bad habits and reset the clock on your professional and personal lives.
