How to Balance Your Work Life with Your Personal Life
It seems everyone is having a hard time balancing their work life with their personal life nowadays. I have seen corporations where they act almost like sects. Employees have an idea that they belong to one big family and they give it all to it. It is very toxic relationship.
Smart managers should know if the employee doesn’t have a healthy work-life balance, then sooner or later he will have worse and worse results. On the other hand employees, are responsible for their own life balance, not the company they work for. You decide what the priority in your own life is.
Between layoffs, failing companies, and demanding bosses, everyone seems to be growing more stressed and working longer hours. In the mist of all that uncertainty, it’s important to find a little down time for yourself to keep from snapping or running yourself unto the ground.
Here are just a few things you can try to help balance out your life.
1. Schedule Some Down Time.
We all schedule our work hours and important appointments like doctors’ visits, but do you schedule fun for yourself? Will a night out with your spouse recharge your batteries? What about going to a game with your friends? A night out with the girls? Or maybe you’re the type to hop online and go dungeon diving with your guild. Anything that helps you relax is something you should make time for. A nice bath or a workout can help some folks with stress relief, or maybe you just need a good old nap. By scheduling something you can look forward to, you won’t feel so overwhelmed and depressed when you glance at your schedule. Sure you have work Tuesday, but you’re also going to have fun that evening!
2. Rearrange Your Errands
See if you can arrange your errands so that they take up the least time. Maybe you can drop your dry cleaning off and pay your bills on your way to the grocery. Can you clean your house more quickly or efficiently by turning the television off? What about ordering postage online to avoid a trip to the post office? Maybe you can pay a kid down the street to walk your dog or mow the lawn. By making the most of the time you spend running errands, you may find you have a lot more time to relax. Also, consider exchanging chores with neighbors. Lawn care in exchange for babysitting anyone?
3. Develop healthy patterns.
Try to reduce interference. Usually trying to avoid doing something takes more time than time to do the work itself! Adopt the rule of not postponing any case. Do everything only once. If you come back to a task multiple times, that will not only consume a lot of time but will be tiring and distracting as well.
4. Exercise
You knew this was coming. It can be hard to work exercise into a busy schedule, but the fact is, exercise reduces stress and heightens feel-good hormones. Many people find they are more alert, have better concentration and are more productive when they sneak regular exercise into their lives, even if it’s just a short walk every day. Besides, you’ll feel healthier and proud of yourself. That’s always a confidence boost!
5. A little relaxation goes a long way.
You don’t have to make dramatic changes to bring balance to your life. Leaving the office a little early one night a week will give you a little extra down time when you really need it. When it comes to adding more fun activities, add them slowly, just one at a time. If you try to pack all of your favorite activities into one week, you may find yourself more stressed than you were before! If you’re having an especially hard day, take 15 minutes to do breathing exercises, take a bath, listen to music, have a snack, or go on a walk. Anything that will help you de-stress and give you a little boost.
Remember, no matter what anyone else says or thinks, only you know how you really feel. This is your life and should take care of it the best you can.
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Thanks for sharing this advice on creating balance in your life. I agree that it can be hard to find this balance, especially if you are working long hours at a tough job. However, just taking a little bit of time to relax like you mentioned can go a long way. In fact, I’m going to try and spend a little more time each day to just relax and see how much it helps.
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