We often hear people telling us about the importance of having a ‘good’ work-life balance, but what does that mean in practice and why is it important for us to manage it?
A work-life balance doesn’t mean an equal balance or an equal amount of time spent between work and personal time. The perfect work-life balance is totally subjective and will likely change as you have children, start a new career or when you’re nearing retirement. As explained here, at the core of a ‘good’ work-life balance are two key concepts: Achievement and Enjoyment. Often achievement is attributed to your work life and enjoyment to your personal.
With the rise of technology, it’s become more difficult to separate our work and personal life to the point where it’s now common place to respond to emails outside of working hours or to take work calls whilst on holiday, so we are used to never really ‘switching off’. This can have serious impacts on our health and wellbeing so it’s worth knowing how a better work-life balance could help you. You can find the full article on the benefits of a good work-life balance here.
Less Susceptible To Burnouts
Whilst occasional stress is normal for every job, burnouts are certainly not. The negative effects of a burnout impacts every area of your life, including your personal and social life. Work-life balance is important as it allows you to separate work and home, meaning that the stress of work can stay at work, and not follow you outside of office hours.
Attention Is Paid Where Due
With a balance between work and home, comes greater control of where your focus remains. If you leave your work at the office, your full attention will be on your home life and give your relationships the attention they deserve. When spending time with your partner, children or friends, your mind can be solely focused on the experience you are having, rather than thinking of work.
We Experience Fewer Health Issues
It’s no secret that when we are run down, tired or stressed, our immune system is the one to suffer. Stress can cause a variety of symptoms and can affect your overall health and wellbeing, from less serious conditions such as the flu, to more serious health issues such as respiratory or digestive problems. Either way, the fact that stress can impact your health so much is even more of a reason to establish and maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Increased Productivity
Taking the time to look after yourself by exercising, eating well, relaxing and switching off will not only help to limit potential health problems but will make you a more efficient, alert and productive worker during business hours so that you can then, in turn, enjoy your downtime.
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