Failing to achieve a healthy work-life balance means more than simply skipping the gym, and the physical effects can be far more impactful! According to a study by the World Health Organisation and the International Labour Organisation, people who work more than 55 hours per week are at an increased risk of stroke, anxiety and sadness. Other studies suggest that working longer hours is associated with a loss in physical health, even after accounting for fairly typical sleep patterns.
How To Identify a Poor Work-Life Balance
As the name suggests, work-life balance affects all facets of your life, but the manner in which it affects you can vary from person to person. However, there are many several easily identifiable characteristics of poor work-life balance that can help you to identify the problem.
- You can’t stop thinking about work, even when you’re off the clock. People who struggle to set boundaries between their personal and professional lives are far more likely to suffer burnout.
- Your personal and professional relationships are starting to deteriorate. For example, you may find yourself becoming distant from your loved ones or easily irritated by your co-workers.
- Anything that isn’t work related feels unimportant or uninteresting, and you simply can’t be bothered to do anything unless you absolutely have to. You start to become isolated by turning down invites to social events and distancing yourself from your friends.
- You can’t imagine spending your life in your current job role. Even if you if you have great opportunities for career progression, or if you were once ecstatic about your current job role or employer, you no longer want to continue on your current career path.
- No matter what you’re doing, you always feel like you should be doing something else.
How To Improve Your Work-Life Balance
Whilst we would love to offer a simple answer, the reality is that no single prescription will work for everyone. As we mentioned earlier, work-life balance affects individuals in different ways, and as such, the most effective way of solving the problem – and the time it takes you to do so – will be entirely unique to you. One piece of advice: begin modestly. Although you might be eager to improve, your work habits have been developed over time and aren’t likely to change overnight! If you set a more manageable goal at the beginning, such as taking a daily five-minute break from your workstation, you’ll be far more likely to stay with it. Whilst we can’t offer a specific solution, we can suggest the most effective methods that have worked for us, so here are our seven top tips to improve your work-life balance.
- Where possible, try to incorporate your job duties into some social, recreational, or physical activity. For example, if you hold several virtual meetings back-to-back, you might want to hold them whilst taking a stroll. Alternatively, you could also ask a friend to come over and work with you, or if the noise level permits, you could consider taking your business calls outside.
- Designate specific time slots for various tasks. For example, you could establish a set period of time each morning for responding to emails, attending meetings, or working on intellectually taxing tasks. Scheduling these tasks for your more productive hours is usually beneficial, so we recommend scheduling them in the morning after a fresh cup of coffee!
- Make a point to finish work at a certain time. The old adage that “work expands to fill the time allocated” is entirely correct. To compound this, most people now work from home, which makes it much easier for work to intrude on your personal time. It is important to establish a time to stop working for the day, and to enforce this by turning off any work equipment, locking your office, or planning something to do afterward.
- Eat lunch with co-workers or go out to eat. Even if you work from home, you can meet up with co-workers or go out for lunch. This offers a refreshing change of pace from your daily routine, and will, of course, prompt you to eat! It’s surprising how many people neglect good dietary habits or simply work through their lunch break.
- To this end, make sure that you take a break! Taking some downtime is necessary to allow you to refresh and recharge. This not only helps to reduce stress and fatigue, but actually boosts your productivity, so you can work better rather than longer.
- Don’t force yourself to work through sickness. When you spend all of your time at home, you often try to nurse illnesses that undoubtedly would have kept you from work. Time off for bereavement, sick days, personal time, vacations, and other reasons is crucial for your welfare.
- Find an activity you enjoy doing outside of work. It is far easier to switch off from work if you have something exciting planned for after work hours. Our interests provide us more vigour and energy. When we play and feel creative, we return to work with a new perspective.
If you’re keen to find some new friends and activities, but you’re not sure where to start, Spice has got you covered. We offer plenty of awesome events packed with lots of fantastic people, so whether you’re searching for that new hobby, looking for new friends, or if you just need a fun reason to clock off from work on time, we’re here to help! We cater to all people and all different interests, from quiet walks and book clubs, to salsa dancing and ski trips, so you’ll always find something to match your tastes! If you’re interested in joining us, please check out our membership page, or feel free to contact our team for a chat. We would love to hear from you!
