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““Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving””
— Albert Einstein
Building A Healthier Work-Life Balance To Prevent Burning Out

Building A Healthier Work-Life Balance To Prevent Burning Out

Taya Bregant
Lifestyle

Although everyones version of work-life balance is different and personal to their own priorities and preferences, it is fundamental that we are able to find time for work as well as time for ourselves or for our family, friends and all other non work related activities.

In this blog post, we look at exactly that: What work life balance actually is, why we should care about it as well as how to bring more of it back into our lives.

I have previously written about this topic here, so if you are interested, please check it out.

I hope you enjoy this one 😊

WHAT EVEN IS WORK-LIFE BALANCE?


Work life balance is the act of maintaining some sort of equilibrium between the demands of ones professional career with the demands of our personal lives.

There is a common misconception that with work-life balance, we have to spend equal times doing our personal things and also working while that is not true. In some stages or phases of our lives, that equilibrium will not be perfectly balanced and equally shared, instead we will slightly prioritize one aspect more than the other and then perhaps in the next stage of our life, our priorities shift again and rebalance.

It is both the idea of viewing work life balance in the long run, but also seeing it through an everyday lens of how you are spending your time and trying our best to do some personal and work related things each day, to the best of our abilities.

Realize that life is not perfect, but what you can do is to simply try your best at making time for yourself, for others and for your work in whatever proportions make most sense to you in that period of your life.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?


Even though achieving work life balance is always a work in progress and never really a final point in time that we reach, there are some important reasons for why it should be prioritized:


Greatly impacts your mental health

  • If you find that you are experiencing a lot of stress each day but don't have enough time to unwind, that stress can become unmanageable and start seriously negatively impacting your mental health. You may start experiencing increased fatigue, poor memory, reduced ability to focus and concentrate as well as increasing your chances for depression or anxiety disorders.

  • Another potent effect of poor life balance is the increased likelihood of developing burnout which is recognized as a state of complete mental, psychical and emotional exhaustion causing you to find less enjoyment in enjoyable everyday activities and being more prone to isolation and other illnesses. A study in 2022 which examined over 15,000 employees in 15 countries shower that about a quarter of those employees showed symptoms of burnout and exhaustion, making burnout an ever increasing condition around the world.


Your physical health is at risk too

  • A poor work life balance can in the long run seriously increase your risk for various diseases such as cardiovascular disease and disorders of the musco-skeletal and psychological kind along side endocrinological issues. Some studies have also started making a link between chronically high stress levels and a higher chance of developing certain cancers and ulcers. Therefore, maintaining a healthy work life balance not only reduces your stress but also allows you to prioritize your health and wellbeing by making the time to move your body, eat healthy and properly unwind when needed.


Your job or career performance is impacted

  • Many studies have proven that excessive stress in the work place makes employees sick more frequently and leads to poorer employee productivity overall. Being stressed and over worked also diminishes your ability to focus and make good coherent decisions both in our personal and work lives.

10 TIPS FOR REGAINING WORK LIFE BALANCE


Stop And Asses Your Situation

  • Often, when we are faced with many responsibilities, tasks, and things to worry about, we get so caught up in our everyday problems and commitments that we often forget to take the time to pause, slow down, and reflect on what is actually happening and how we are feeling. We have to be honest with ourselves and look at our situation objectively to figure out how we are actually feeling, what is causing us stress or anxiety each day, and what things cause us to be dissatisfied during the day.

  • Furthermore, it is important to consider how these emotions are impacting your performance in your job, in your personal relationships, or even in your hobbies, and the relationship you have with yourself.

  • This step is ultimately about coming to terms with what is, embracing your feelings, and starting to acknowledge the issues that need to be tackled first to ensure you stay in good health. Consider what your current priorities are (where you put most of your current time and energy) as well as what things you are sacrificing and what is being lost in the process. Write it all down as it will come in useful later.


Accept That There Is No Perfect Work Life Balance

  • Usually, when we hear the concept of 'work-life balance,' we imagine this perfect scenario where you spend half of your day working, and the other half is spent with your family, the people you love, and working on yourself. While this may be true sometimes, it is faulty to assume that it's like this every day. Additionally, when we place this pressure on ourselves to live a perfect life every day, we start to unnecessarily compare ourselves, which causes us to feel dissatisfied and disappointed by ourselves, which does us no good.

  • Instead, it is better to focus on a realistic schedule instead of a perfect one, since there will inevitably be things that will come up unexpectedly, and we have to learn to be flexible and agile in these scenarios, both with our time and energy.

  • When it comes to a realistic schedule, our priorities may shift slightly from day to day or week to week. For example, on some days, you may focus more on work and your career, while on other days, you may focus more on enjoying life with the people closest to you. Overall, the point is that this sense of balance is achieved over time and is not defined by living perfectly every day, since that is impossible to begin with in the first place.


Set And Follow Your Priorities

  • When you think about it, our priorities dictate how we spend each hour of our everyday, whether we realize it or not. How you choose to spend your time in each moment is simply a reflection of your current priorities, which may be internal, such as you deciding that you want to go on a walk today, or they might be external, such as someone else telling you what you have to do.

  • Poor work-life balance and especially burnout are usually a result of poor prioritization, where we tend to prioritize work and productive output much more than the time for resting, socializing, or taking care of our health. This can result in some serious issues down the line, as discussed above. To improve this, we have to reflect on how we are currently prioritizing our time and how we would like to change and realign our priorities.

  • To help with this, consider what makes a day great for you, in terms of what has to happen for you to finish the day thinking, 'Wow, today was great.' List a couple of such personal and work-related activities and then see how you could fit them into your current daily lifestyle. This will ensure that your priorities are much more balanced, instead of being so work-focused and heavy.


Recognizing And Creating Healthy Boundaries

  • Creating healthy boundaries is a crucial step in promoting a better work-life balance. It involves setting clear limits on how much time and energy you dedicate to work and personal life. By defining when your workday begins and ends, you can ensure that your personal time remains sacred, free from work-related intrusions.

  • Communicating these boundaries with colleagues and superiors is essential, as it fosters understanding and respect for your personal life. Embracing technology wisely, such as using separate devices or applications for work and personal matters, can help reinforce these boundaries. Healthy boundaries empower you to recharge, reduce stress, and maintain a healthier equilibrium between your professional and personal life, ultimately enhancing your overall well-being and productivity


Taking Time To Unplug

  • Unplugging is paramount for achieving a healthy work-life balance in our increasingly digital and connected world. The constant stream of work-related emails, notifications, and responsibilities can encroach on our personal time, leading to burnout and stress. By disconnecting from work, whether it's at the end of the day or during vacations, we allow ourselves to recharge and focus on our personal lives, relationships, and well-being.

  • Unplugging not only reduces the risk of burnout but also fosters mental and emotional rejuvenation, enabling us to return to work with increased productivity and creativity. It reinforces the boundary between work and personal life, helping us strike a more harmonious balance between the two, ultimately leading to a happier and healthier existence.


Taking Time Off When Needed

  • When you notice yourself feeling exhausted, lacking in creative ideas, or experiencing a general sense of decreasing productivity, it may be well worth taking a break or, when possible, going on vacation for a couple of days or a week.

  • Although sometimes it may feel unproductive to take time off and rest, with many of us feeling guilty for even thinking about it, it is crucial to do so; otherwise, we can become seriously burnt out and further hinder our health.

  • Many studies confirm that the benefits associated with taking time off far outweigh the downsides of not doing it. With proper planning and coordination, you can take a break without feeling guilty and return to your workplace without encountering disarray or an overwhelming backlog of work.


Make Time For Yourself And Those Who You Love

  • Even though your career and job are important aspects of your life, they shouldn't be your entire life. Studies show that genuine and frequent social interaction is a key predictor of happiness and overall health in humans. That's why you should make time each day and each week to spend time with the people you love, such as family, significant others, friends, or colleagues. Find ways to support more social activities in your weekly routine, such as scheduling future meetups and dates on a calendar or simply calling or texting your friends more often.

  • Time spent with yourself is just as important as time spent with other people, as it allows you to recharge, explore new hobbies, learn about new fields of interest, and work on self-improvement. Both aspects are needed to find happiness.

  • The aim is to do your best when it comes to prioritizing both yourself and all the other important individuals in your life, as meaningful and trusting relationships are truly important for our overall happiness and satisfaction in life.


Having An Occupation Which Truly Excites You

  • If you dislike what you do every day, obviously, you will not be showing up to work happy and energized. In the long run, this can lead to a severe decline in productivity, poor self-esteem, and even depression. This is an example where work-life balance may take a turn in the other direction, where we want to spend as much time out of our job as possible. This can lead us to overindulge in comforting activities such as overeating, leading a sedentary lifestyle, and, in general, not taking good care of ourselves.

  • When you find a career that fits you and excites you, your overall happiness and energy levels can return to normal. This can help you rebuild a weekly schedule that supports both your personal and work-related matters, ensuring a healthier work-life balance in the long run."


Listen To Your Body And Emotions

  • One of the key causes of burnout is when we start to lose touch with our own bodies and well-being, suppressing emotions or feelings, and pushing ourselves when our body and mind are clearly signaling the need for a break.

  • We need to become more aware of our body's signals, which tell us when to take a break or perhaps to focus and put our heads down. Overdoing it in either direction is not beneficial.

  • Your body is constantly providing you with feedback about your current physical and mental well-being. However, if you keep ignoring it and pushing it aside, your health will inevitably take a downturn. Therefore, take a couple of minutes each day to truly slow down, perhaps as the first thing in the morning or the last thing at night. Consider how you truly feel, whether you experience any discomfort or pain, and what your body truly needs in that moment. These needs will vary from week to week and may include things like the need for proper sleep and recharging, the need to break out of a boring routine and try something new, or the need to spend less time alone and socialize more


Implement suitable changes

  • Once you have gone through the above steps and figured out how you feel and what is causing you to feel this way, it is time to consider which suitable changes you can make to support these new changes that you want to make in your life.

  • When it comes to changes in your private life, you might want to get better at imposing boundaries on when you choose to work and when you choose not to work, or turning down excessive demands from work when you already have plenty going on. In terms of public changes that you can make, you can establish better communication between you and your boss regarding your current capabilities in terms of time and energy. You can suggest to your boss that perhaps a couple of days per week of working from home would work better for you (if that is an option), or maybe discuss the addition of a couple more days of vacation each year.

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS

Overall, it is important to realize that everyone has challenges with finding a work-life balance that works for them. Striving for this balance is something that all of us have to work through every day in order to establish a work-life balance in the long term. The point is not to strive for some perfect idea of work-life balance that is unrealistic and unattainable. Instead, we should try our best each day to prioritize what is truly important to us and what truly makes life worth living in the end.

🧠 KEY IDEAS

In todays blog post we discussed the idea of work life balance, in terms of what it is, what are the issues of a poor work life balance as well as 10 practical tips on how to realign your priorities and restore that balance.

✏️ REFERENCES

Gaining Back Deep Focus And Meaningful Productivity

Gaining Back Deep Focus And Meaningful Productivity
Understanding And Coping With Stress

Understanding And Coping With Stress

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