Is there such thing as work/life balance?
Today’s employee juggles a lot.
Whether that’s caring for children, caring for elderly parents (or for some – both!), we are shouldering more than ever outside of the office.
There’s also been a shift in recent years as to how we approach this thing called work life balance.
With technology making it nearly impossible for most of us to truly unplug, we must remind ourselves that what sometimes holds us hostage can also set us free – if used correctly.
Here are a few things I’ve seen help to manage it all:
Set boundaries where you can. Responding to texts and emails outside of “core” business hours can set the expectation with clients and colleagues that you are always available – be careful.
If working from home, it’s easy to get sucked into a 12 hour day (I’m guilty of it!). Consider setting a recurring alarm on your phone for the end of your workday. When the alarm goes off, wrap up that task and be finished for the day. Close your office door to signal to your brain that you’ve “left the office”. Put your phone on the charger - try not to look at it again until after you’ve spent the desired time on other things - dinner, family time, sports – whatever that looks like for you.
Try to take some time to truly unplug! If you’re a producer, manager, or business owner and don’t have a true “back up” it can be tough, but you can at least do it for a day. Unless you have a huge deal brewing, the world will not fall apart if you don’t check your emails/texts for 10 hours.
This kind of contradicts #3 but – when I’m away for a week, or even out of the office for a day, spending 20 minutes at the end of the day taking care of important items and clearing out the inbox clutter can create a much smoother transition to jump back in the next day.
I create a to-do list of the top 3 most important things I need to accomplish each day and email it to myself the night before. Nothing else gets done before those 3 things. Then if I should find myself with a sunny afternoon and a light workload, and I want to take an impromptu afternoon off, I can!
Juggling a career, a family, and everything in between isn’t easy. Striking a balance with work and personal can help ensure you thrive at both! And remember, there’s no right or wrong way to do it – don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. In the end, do what works for you!