Balancing your professional and personal life can be challenging. I know all too well about burnout and not having a work-life balance. I worked in a job for over ten years, where it was the norm to work 10-12 hours a day, on a regular basis. I came home exhausted with no energy to enjoy my personal life. My work took precedence over everything. Several years ago, I decided to make a career change to a Career Coach, and as a result, I feel like a new person with a job I love.
Before you give up on your work-life balance dream, determine what’s important to you. With technology giving us endless access to work, creating a work-life balance is more critical than ever. It’s essential given the culture of unpredictable workplace pressures and the blurring lines between work and personal life.
Ways to Create a Work-Life Balance
An ideal work-life balance involves minimizing work-related stress and establishing a sustainable way to work while maintaining good health and general well-being. Creating a harmonious work-life balance is critical to your physical, emotional, and mental well-being in addition to your career.
The benefits are numerous and include less stress, a lower risk of burnout, and a greater sense of well-being. Read on for key tactics you can start implementing today for better work-life balance.
1. Let Go of Perfection
As you climb the ladder at work or your family grows, your responsibilities balloon. When demands on your time are constant, perfectionism may not be helpful. A key to not burning out is to avoid perfectionism. Spend your time on what really matters rather than focusing on the little things.
Accept that there is not a perfect work-life balance. Strive for a realistic one. Some days your energy will be spent focusing more on work, and on others, it will be spent more on your hobbies or time with loved ones. Remember, balance is achieved over time. It's less about a daily allocation of time spent on work vs. life and more about having a career that allows you to live your life when needed. Some days that might mean coming in a few hours late after a doctor's appointment, and other times, being able to take off early for a soccer game.
2. Find a Committed Employer
Find an employer who is committed to providing an environment that supports a work-life balance, with work-from-home options or a flexible work schedule. Do your research to find out more about a potential employer by using companies like Glassdoor or LinkedIn to gauge past and present employee satisfaction. See if the reviews line up with what the company is saying. Remember that not all reviews are accurate; some need to be taken with a grain of salt.
You may be able to find some information regarding the company's benefits and policies online. Review the company’s website by looking at their mission, vision, and values. Determine if they align with your ideas and values. Look at customer reviews; they can provide insight into a company’s culture. Review the job description for the role you are applying for to help determine what your workload might be. Asking the following questions at an interview can also help to determine if a company offers a work-life balance:
What does a typical day look like?
What makes the company’s culture unique?
How do you ensure that employees have a healthy work-life balance?
What is the company’s policy around overtime, time off, vacation, and appointments?
Employers without a genuine focus on an employee's work-life balance may respond with just a brief line or two and move on. Still, those committed to a work-life balance for their employees will typically share the specifics of their approach, which will show that it matters to them.
3. Find a Job You Love
If you don’t like your job, you will not be happy in the long term. Of course, it's impossible to love every aspect of your job, but it needs to be exciting enough that you don't dread going to work every day. Find a job that you are passionate about.
If you are doing a job you truly don’t love and feel stuck, it's time to find a new one. Consider hiring a career coach who can guide you through a career exploration process to help you find your dream job.
4. Set Manageable Goals Each Day
Meeting priorities gives us a sense of accomplishment and control. The more control we have, the less stress we feel. Be realistic about your workload. Make a to-do list, finish the most important tasks first, and eliminate unnecessary ones. Be realistic about your to-do list. You can only accomplish so much in a day.
5. Be Efficient with Your Time at Work
If we procrastinate, tasks can start to feel daunting and cause unneeded stress. When you have a large project at work or home, start by dividing it into smaller tasks.
Complete the first one before moving on to the next. Reward yourself when you’ve completed a task that you’ve been putting off, whether it’s a five-minute break or a walk to the coffee shop.
6. Set Work Boundaries and Hours
As a Career Coach, I know that setting boundaries in the workplace is an essential skill for people to have. I've often seen poor boundaries that lead to overwork, poor communication, misunderstandings, and often resentment towards work. Setting good boundaries is a skill we can all learn as it allows us to be more productive and improve our mental health.
Here are some examples of work boundaries:
Determine the most stressful part of your job and what boundaries could be made to make it more tolerable.
Clarify your role and responsibilities and negotiate with your employer if they seem unreasonable.
Set realistic expectations around your accessibility, project timelines, and how much you are taking on.
Take breaks, as needed, to support your physical and mental well-being. Proper breaks will make you more productive.
Respectfully communicate your needs if they aren’t being met.
7. Exercise
As important as exercise is, it's usually one of the first things that go when we're busy. Exercise is an effective stress reducer. It helps lift your mood and increases your energy.
Commit to carving out time in your calendar to work out regularly. You won’t regret it!
8. Learn to Say “No"
Learning how to say "no" can be one of the most challenging soft skills for anyone to learn and put into practice, but it's an integral part of setting boundaries. Start by reviewing and prioritizing your tasks and letting others know what’s realistic for you to take on. It can be helpful to recognize that saying “no” to things that are less of a priority frees up time and energy to say “yes” and address other things that are important to you.
9. Don’t Be Afraid to Unplug
Technology has helped us to become more efficient, but it has created expectations of constantly being accessible, meaning our workday never ends. Phone notifications and emails can interrupt your time off and cause you to stress without realizing it. Consider turning your phone off at a scheduled time each evening to enjoy some uninterrupted time.
10. Don’t Over Commit
It’s important to remember that free time doesn’t have to be available time. In other words, just because you have a free night on your calendar doesn't mean you have to say "yes'' when a coworker asks you to go to an event with them. It's important to remember that you can turn invitations down to allow time for yourself. When you have free time, don't always feel obligated to get other things done, like emails and errands. Use some of this time to do something for yourself, like a yoga class, a walk, or reading a good book. Block off time for yourself. You are worth it!
11. Take a Vacation
Taking time off from your everyday life—deadlines, expectations, office politics, grocery runs, and dreary commutes—positively impacts your health. From blood pressure to daily energy levels, your mind and body will be able to recover to tackle the next challenge. Knowing that a vacation is coming up can lower stress. You don't necessarily need to spend much money to be away from work. Consider a staycation.
Implementing Lasting Change
Before jumping into solutions, reflect on the aspects of your work and personal life that you could improve. Determine the areas you would like to see changes, carefully consider your options, and then create a plan to help you progress toward your goals.
If your work has developed into a culture of long work hours, it's easy to slide back into this pattern, whether conscious or not. To make lasting changes in your life, you must continually remember to pause, connect with your emotions, rethink priorities, evaluate alternatives, and implement changes. Start with the small steps, and commit to the consistent work of implementing positive change gradually over time.
Career Counselling in Vancouver
If you’re looking for career counselling in Vancouver, we have helped countless women establish a solid foundation for their personal and professional success. We can help you illuminate your path to a meaningful, sustainable career that works for your specific wants and needs.
Get in touch with me today at 604-818-7626, or email kimhempler@careersyncservices.com!
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