Work Life Balance – How to Get it Right

For millions of working people, the dream of having a career and a personal life seems like a faraway possibility. This is especially true in developed nations, where professionals frequently work overtime, neglect to take paid time off, and are locked into cycles of workaholism. It’s even more prevalent with entrepreneurs and solopreneurs. It’s really not surprising that stress from working too much causes so many illnesses and family problems.
Restoring Work Life Balance in 6 Steps
Yet, it is possible to get work life balance right, with a strategic plan to prioritize what’s most important in life. Here are some ways to restore work life balance and harmony to your lifestyle.

1. Develop a flexible career. If at all possible, take the time to develop a career path that allows you some flexibility with your scheduling and work environment. While it may seem glamorous having a full time day job or own your own business, you may continually experience conflicts between caring for your personal and family responsibilities and reporting to the workplace. Fortunately, there are a wide variety of careers available today that allow the flexibility of working remotely at least part of the time, so you can experience more work life balance.

2. Get a support network. While you may consider yourself to be an independent person, there are times when you need the morale support of others. Especially as an entrepreneur. There are days when you really need support. Start now to develop a network of friends, family members, and colleagues around you to lean on when you need help. You can find this through social networks, religious, community and civic groups; and within your current work environment.

3. Outsource some tasks. Just because you think you can do it all doesn’t mean you have to do it all or you should do it all. Take the time to review the tasks you manage on a daily basis and decide what can be delegated out to others. For example, you may want to assign some household chores to your older children. Or you can automate a report you always create each month, so you can focus on other more enjoyable tasks.

4. Put your personal health first. A large part of having work life balance is taking good care of your physical and mental well-being. Eating a healthy diet, getting adequate exercise, and taking breaks can help you to remain healthy. This health translates to better performance when engaged in work or family activity.

5. Learn to manage time well. A poorly managed schedule can lead to work life overload fast. If you find yourself spending hours doing meaningless tasks, or repeating the same tedious activities over and over again, perhaps it’s time to take a look at what you can do to stop wasting time. Remember, we all get the same amount of time each day, so make the most of this to recapture work life balance. We work with a number of clients to streamline and automate their business to save time.

6. Prioritize your family, then work. Create your own personal time boundaries and stick to them. Ensure you build family time into your schedule and ‘me’ time and do not compromise that time. Don’t answer your phone or check emails. Keep the time devoted to your family to connect and focus. Do not be distracted by work obligations.