Get a (balanced) life in 2022!
Work-life balance is about focusing at work, but also having the health and energy to enjoy your personal life. Increased responsibilities at work and at home, can affect your balance, causing you to stress, feel unhappy, and be less productive.
To achieve and or maintain a work-life balance, try the following:
- Track Your Time
Keep a time log of everything you do at home and at work for one week to understand how you are using, and losing, your time.
- Prioritise
Make a list of your top priorities at work and home. Ask: What should I stop doing, start doing, continue doing, or do differently?
- Diarise
Work-life balance requires deliberate action. Block time into your schedule for family or “you time,” just as you would for an important meeting or a doctor’s appointment. You have one life, prioritise it.
- Set Boundaries
Set fair and realistic limits on what you will and will not do, both at work and at home. Clearly communicate these boundaries.
- Prioritise your Health
If you’re not in good shape physically, mentally, and emotionally, both your work and personal life will suffer. Eat nutritiously, sleep a minimum of seven hours per night, and exercise. If you need therapy, fit it in. You may think you don’t have time, but these actions help to reduce your stress, and boost your stamina, energy, as well as productivity.
- Unplug
Cutting off from the world allows us to recover from weekly stress. Unplugging can be simple like practicing meditation, or connecting with your spiritual source. Take your leave days to recharge, whether it’s a one-day staycation or a two-week trip.
- Be realistic
Sometimes you have to work late or the kids need you. Don’t feel like you have to make big changes all at once. Even just a few of the suggested changes, can help you achieve better balance.
Chat to a LifeAssist counsellor for ways to create a sustainable plan of action.