We all have a fuel tank with limited fuel: Every one of us has a fixed amount of energy to use each day. How we distribute this energy between the main components of our life (e.g. work, rest, family and leisure) influences our work-life balance. If we put too much energy into work, too little energy into rest, family and leisure, and if we do it for too long, our well-being will suffer. Our health suffers, and our family and relationships suffer. We may be on the road to Burnout!
Balance involves giving appropriate amounts of attention/ time/energy to the important aspects of our life and often this needs to be flexible in order to deal with life’s natural challenges. Sometimes we need to work a bit harder, and sometimes rest a bit harder.
Individual differences
Because we are all different, we will also have different balance needs and we discover this with experience and self-reflection.
Balance requires self-management
Because life challenges, work load, other people and our own standards can pull us away from balance we require effective self and people management skills to build and maintain balance including: Self-awareness, (what’s needed); Time management (managing the load); Goal setting (what needs to be different); Problem solving (removing the obstacles); Stress management (managing pressure) and Assertiveness & saying no (managing others).
Components of Balance
Work – paid, voluntary, home duties, study
Personal Development – Identity, self-esteem, learning and stimulation
Social – family, friends, groups, teams
Spiritual – values, beliefs, religion, heart and mind
Heart and Mind – managing emotions and thinking
Physical – exercise, sport, activity, diet, health
Relaxation – leisure, rest
Benefits of Balance
A lifestyle that balances these activities will increase our personal health and well-being via the following avenues:
- Reduces stress and prevents burnout
- Stimulates the immune system and promotes recovery from illness
- Increases sense of happiness and well-being
- Provides perspective
- Increases physical health, energy and motivation
- Increases self-esteem, self-development, productivity and flexibility
- Provides social support and connectedness
Recognising Imbalance
Signs of imbalance include the following and maybe either a result of being off balance or an underlying cause of imbalance: decreased energy, motivation, flexibility; increased stress, frustration, worry; withdrawing from others; getting overly involved in work; negative attitude towards work, people or self; changes in general health and performance; lifestyle habits – increased smoking, drugs, caffeine, fast foods and reduced activity. Over time, these reactions can impact on the health of our heart and immune system leading to an increased risk of burnout and lifestyle diseases (i.e. heart disease, obesity, ulcers, diabetes, and some cancers).
Balance is often blocked by the following, all of which can be managed with effort and assistance.
- Lack of motivation
- Running out of Time and Energy
- The load on our plate (and responsibilities)
- Lacking assertive time management skills
- High levels of stress or illness
- Thinking negatively
- Not being able to say ‘no’
- Unaware that there is imbalance – can’t see it
- Life happens – unexpected critical events
Make a list of how you can help ensure a more balanced life.
A few examples include:
- Make time to reflect on your life and balance needs
- Make note of where your energy is going (actual balance) and decide on how you would like your life to be (ideal balance)
- Set reasonable goals and removing obstacles
- Know your role and responsibilities and your expectations
- Accept your limits (time, energy, skills) as a natural part of working life
- Take time to relax or energise. Have some fun, just read a book or walk on a beach or in a park. Have a massage, sing, dance or play a sport.
- Slow down – your inbox will never be empty.
- Share problems, but be careful what you share and with whom – giving too much personal information or confidential work problems is a definite NO.
- Accept that you will experience a full range of emotion and learn how to express this appropriately.
- Control negative thinking (worry) by rationally reviewing each situation. Ask yourself, ‘what would I be telling a friend in this situation to help them?’ Take it one step at a time.
- Eat a healthy, balanced diet. Reduce your intake of sugar, carbohydrate and fat-rich food, caffeine and alcohol, and avoid cigarettes and drugs.
- Spend time with children, family, friends and people you like and get involved with social activities regularly.
- Take time to clarify and discuss your values, beliefs and what is important to you in your life.
Afternoon walks, swimming in the ocean, entertaining and spending time with family are all ways that help me recharge and refocus on days off from work.
Maintaining a work/life balance has been difficult after not flying anymore, balancing part time and casual jobs to make ends meet results in time for self often coming second, a significant change after the generous periods of “me time” flying offered. Minimising my time on social media (or at least attempting to!) and trying to find time to get outside, even if for a 20 minute walk, can help to get back on track.
Hello everyone. It certainly seems to be getting more difficult to balance the needs of work and having a healthy lifestyle. Maybe just a function of getting older, having kids, juggling more and more tasks or work demands increasing but it seems noticeably more difficult finding that balance than it used to be. I tend to use planning and organisation and my best defence against being overwhelmed with tasks. I then try and combine that when I can with exercise (cycling and lots of walking) to try and find time to relax and problem solve. Having a dog also seems… Read more »
Yes it is important to find time to relax, I agree with you, Dog walking is a great de-stressor.
i need to do this course as i need to retrain after not flying anymore. I do need to look at work life balance and realize its a must. I am studying after a long break so a bit nervous.
No need to stress Lauren you will find the course is very managable and you will recieve support all the way.
Kerry
Hi all. Maintaining a work/life balance is absolutely important. Juggling work, family life, exercise and general day to day errands can be hectic to say to least. Thanks to this pandemic, a lot of adjustment has taken place over the past few months (especially being stood down from aviation). I have enjoyed more quality time with my wife and kids and taking up this course will also help me fine tune my career prospects as things start to get moving again. Enjoying sports (both by myself and with others) and doing renovations around the house has really helped keep my… Read more »
Hello all, Since the pandemic struck the world my work life balance has become one as I was stood down from work. Starting this course will help me to balance my study time and family life.
I eat well and enjoy walking my staffy pooch (Holly) without taking my phone this allows me to clear my thoughts without interruption. All the best to everyone x
Hi everyone, work/life balance has always been a struggle for me but I am learning to love doing things I genuinely enjoy (such as reconnecting with nature and going on long hikes with friends). I find that I come home feeling refreshed and happy. I am also a firm believer in being organised so that things get done and I am not overwhelmed. Good luck to everyone, I am also excited to be on this journey with you all.
Hi Everyone, I hope you are all managing to keep healthy physically and mentally during this pandemic. I have decided that during this time of uncertainty i will educate myself not only academically but psychologically. It is a great time to explore mental health and what works for me. At the top of a balanced life For me is my mental wellbeing, to nurture this I have always included Good nutrition and exercise, however i am taking the time to explore different types. Voluntary work with animals and catching up with friends is important to me to feel needed and… Read more »
Hello everyone, few familiar names in the group… well different time zones are going to be a challenge… Perth today, London tomorrow but loads of isolation to get my head around everything… good luck to one and all xx
I have dedicated one day a week to being my son’s day – we do whatever he wants to do and the household chores and work worries can wait for the day. I have found for my own personal wellbeing it is important to realise no matter how much you get done today, there will always be something else tomorrow – the list is endless – but that’s OK because that means you never have to complete something today if you don’t have the time. I am a firm believer that if you listen to your body (ie I’m feeling… Read more »
I like to spend as much time outdoors as possible. I do ocean swimming with a group in the mornings, I walk/run with my dog. I workout with a fun group on the beach in the early mornings. I also keep my mobile phone on silent for most of the day, and have turned off all notifications so I have to actively go into the app/chat group etc to check messages etc. I am missing my local choir as due to current covid restrictions/recommendations we are not currently meeting. This is hard as music is a big part of my… Read more »
I have set my work phone to automatic ‘do not disturb’ mode from 7pm – 7am everyday, so I dont get the alerts throughout my down time.
I also make sure I allocate 30 mins of exercise everyday.
I find it easier to plan my day if I have blocked out time for important events or just to have a lunch break. It’s so easy to end up in back to back meetings when you don’t protect some time for you. I also turn off email notifications – nothing like a ding in the middle of dinner or a movie to upset your balance.
Most of us leaders and managers talk about work-life balance and preach it to our teams; however, we forget that we also need to get the balance right. Let’s think about the effect of one team member lacking the right balance vs. the team leader. On the one hand, The team member’s lack of work-life balance leads to his lack of performance, which, for the most part, can be isolated to the individual’s duties. One the other hand, when a leader or manager is tired, overworked, or/and stressed, the effect would spread to the team, and it will have a… Read more »
I focus on the fundamentals of health; rest, nutrutition and exercise. For me, the trick is to develop daily routines that incorporate this healthy way of living. Work/life balance is far easier to achieve when the fundamentals are sound and followed-through consistently. This looks like at least 7 hours of sleep per night, a low carbohydrate/medium protein/high fat diet (although this changes slightly given the season and the fresh produce available) and weight training (although with covid-19, this has turned into stretching and spin bike sessions). These are the fundamentals, once I’m in a solid rouitne with these, I can… Read more »
There have been times when I have allowed the scales to tip in the favour of work. Retrospectively what I noticed about myself was the increased level of stress, becoming run down, becoming ineffective in daily work tasks, suddenly feeling like things were mounting up and not knowing which to tackle first in order to fix up the mess. When things were balanced and are balanced, everything just seems to flow and to some degree work itself out (obviously wiht a bit of effort from me). Things I do to keep my balance and one of the priorities most of… Read more »
I am a single mother to 2 young children, who need my time and energy. On top of full time work.
So for me the work/life balance is essential in coping with everyday stresses.
For me I like to reconnect with nature. Go for a walk in the bush, be near or around water.
Catch up with my sisters/friends and talk about life, our journeys, our days etc.
I also give myself 20 minutes of an afternoon after work to shut down properly and get into full mother mode.
I like to give myself ‘permission’ to have a half hour of playing online games in the early afternoon. It’s my transition from day to evening before I prepare dinner. Whenever possible I also love to travel and to practice my photography. I have lots of travel photos on my phone/ipad and this is a way of also remembering the amazing places I have visited and experiences I have had while travelling – its a little bit of travel in my pocket that I can access at any time when I want to escape. I have a really full load… Read more »
It is good you have recognised the need to have some time out and do something you enjoy Michelle. It is important to have a balance with work and play.
I like to spend time outdoors with my family whenever possible to try and improve this balance. We enjoy kayaking and practising Taekwondo together when time permits.
Finding this balance is increasingly difficult due to the increased access to work related emails on weekends, so keeping my family informed if I do need to access these emails is important. I believe communication is the key factor in this issue, as it can be very easy to become overwhelmed with some of the pressures of the balance.
Ben, I think your comment reflects how many people feel these days with access to technology allowing us to be connected 24/7, there is never a break or escape. It is important to manage this though and make sure we take time out for family and relaxation.