Work / Lifestyle Balance

I read somewhere once that we only need three things to be happy:

• Someone to love
• Something we love doing, and
• Something to look forward to.

I would suggest that this is much easier to achieve if we are able to find that Work & Lifestyle balance that is so important in so many ways.

Having sifted through many articles and publications, I think these are the important topics we need to address:

Family:

Making time to spend together as a family is very important.

In today’s hectic world of work, school schedules and out-of-school activities, it’s hard to find the all-important family time. Maybe some conversation over dinner before the kids bolt back to their social media. Maybe watching a movie together and reflecting on what you’re watching. Maybe a chat while driving to school in the morning. Walking the dog together?

Making time to spend with relatives is also desirable. Yes, some can be very difficult, so we do our best without stressing ourselves out. It’s important for the kids to spend time playing with their cousins and for the parents to spend quality time with their siblings.

That occasional family BBQ is a good time to chill out and forget the stresses of work.

Friends:

Make time to spend with your good friends that have a positive influence on you.

Sometimes with the stresses of work, it’s easy to just “not make the effort” to keep in touch.

We have to work at getting in touch and keeping in touch. Don’t forget that they’re probably in the same situation and would love the chance to hang out and chill out with you.

Look at your phone list, address/email diary & social media lists and write down who you haven’t seen for a while and get in touch.

 

Career:

If your work is draining you and you’re not happy, think seriously about getting into something you’re more likely to enjoy.

Who you work with, how your job makes you feel, the industry you’d like to be in and how you want to progress is all things that you should look at.

If you wake up in the morning thinking “Oh, bloody work again!” it’s time to re-think things.

Life is too short.

 

Finances:

If you have money worries, you’re not alone. We live in a wonderful country but the cost of living is seriously high.

People tend to adjust their living costs to their income levels. The more we earn, the more we spend.

The only real solution is to earn more or spend less, or a bit of both.

Earning more requires a plan of how we will advance in our careers or make more money in our businesses. Spending less is easy in theory but very hard in practice. We also need to concentrate on our own spending habits, not our partner’s.

I know families that make ends meet by making strict budgets and putting money aside each week for different coming expenses. They live within their means and reduce their money stress.

 

Hobbies & Interests:

These are really helpful to destress and provide hours of enjoyment.

Whether it’s collecting coins or playing netball, it’s an activity that you enjoy and look forward to. It allows us time away from work worries and allows us to enjoy our lifestyle.

If you’re not actively involved at the moment, make a list of every hobby, interest or sport you can think of that you may be interested in then follow up with one to see how it goes. Hobbies and interests need not be expensive. Jogging or walking is good in many ways while if you like music or singing then joining a singing group or getting out that dusty old guitar may be just what you need for a bit of fun and de-stressing.

 

Diet, Exercise & Sleep:

Sometimes we’re too tired after work to cook a healthy meal so we take the shortcut of getting some fast food. This is understandable but not desirable. We are getting more overweight and unhealthy with obvious negative consequences.

There are plenty of cook books that provide easy to prepare healthy meals. It’s amazing how much better we feel if we eat a healthy balanced diet.

We also have a need for regular exercise. Whether we count steps via our Fitbits or go to the gym for that aerobics class or just walk the dog twice a day, it all helps.

So many people are now taking part in Park Runs (or walks) that are free of charge and good for us.

Most importantly, a good sleep is essential for our well being.

Your Smart Watch or Fitbit will show you the quality of your sleep if you wear it at night. I use a Garmin and it shows me my total length of sleep and how much time was spent in Light, Deep or REM sleep. It also shows me how my body has recharged over the night.

Conclusion:

As I write this, I hear myself saying “wouldn’t it be nice if I had the time to do all this!”

The answer is that we have to make the time for our own sake and mental health.

We need that circuit breaker that gets us out there and away from the daily stresses of work so that we can have a healthy balanced life with our loved ones.

It’s not easy, but it’s doable.

Write & let me know what you do to achieve a healthy work/life balance. What have you tried? What worked or didn’t work. What insights did you gain?