The first step to solving any problem is to acknowledge that it exists. Up until the point you do this, it is fundamentally impossible to solve the issue at hand. So whether you are reading this because you feel that you are struggling to maintain a healthy work life balance or because you don’t think you have found the right balance, there is good news. You can now do something about it.
It is clear that technology has had a transformative impact on both our personal lives and our work lives over the last thirty years.
In many ways, we have technology to thank for streamlining certain processes, boosting our productivity and ultimately, making it easier to complete our work tasks at hand. In contrast, it has, for many people, thinned the line between when you are on the clock and when you are off it. Just because it is easy to read an email at the weekend and send off a quick response doesn’t meant that you should be. There are exceptions and it of course depends on your position and work schedule, but it is something you need to consider.
The same can be said when it comes to our personal lives. It is now easier than ever to book tickets, make a reservation or shop online, but we are also more available than we have ever been, to the point where we may feel like we never have any time for ourselves. If not careful, it is very easy to feel constantly in both work and friend mode, which can cause havoc with our body & mind.
So, for this article, we have put together our three top tips to avoid burnout and maintain a healthy work life balance.
Avoid What You Can’t Ignore
If you are the type of person that can’t say no to a friend asking for a favour or ignore a notification for a work email when you are supposed to be relaxing, then make sure you don’t see it. Set yourself work time, social time and time for yourself and stick to it. Don’t distract yourself from work with social media and don’t distract yourself from your life with work.
At first, despite sounding simple, this may prove extremely hard to do, but if you compartmentalise your life, you are more than halfway towards maintaining it.
Put Yourself First
How many times have we had a gut feeling about something or known that we should or shouldn’t do something, only to end up doing it. Whether it is peer pressure or a feeling of responsibility that leads us down this path is not what is important, what is important is that if you do not put yourself first, it is everyone who loses.
This is where we can use technology to work in our favour. Technology can mean you can do some of your work from home or occasionally avoid a long commute by utilisingvideo conferencing. No matter what your work requires, there is always a technological opportunity to make it easier.
Also, if you don’t feel like making the trip across the city to go the cinema, stay home and stream a movie. If the thought of dressing up and waiting in the rain for a taxi doesn’t tempt you on a particular Friday night, turn you home into your escape. There are now hundreds of possibilities online, from taking a virtual tour, playing andar bahar online games or having a karaoke house party.
This is where you need to trust what your body is telling you. Trust us, it is bound to pay off in the long run.
Design Your Life, Realistically
We all have to accept responsibility for the setting and enforcing of boundaries in our life. This is true when it comes to work and when it comes to play. In order to maintain a healthy balance between the two, you must first strike one.
We could all imagine our perfect day or week and fantasise over it for hours on end. The biggest mistake when it comes to designing what you expect and want from your life is that you are unrealistic. You won’t be able to everything in one day, so know your limits and start from there. The sooner you do this, the sooner you can work towards improving upon it.