We all know that working is essential to life. We need money to buy food, pay for housing, and of course get those Netflix subscriptions. It’s becoming easier and easier to put in extra hours by working from home or staying in the office after hours to finish up a project. However, plenty of people fail to realize that we should work to live not live to work. No one ever looks back on life and wishes they would have worked more. No one. For the most part, most people will say that work-life balance is important to them, but many have no idea how to actually achieve it. So, here are some tips on how to achieve and maintain work-life balance.
1. Leave work at work
First and foremost, whether you’re the boss or the employee, work should be left at work. A way to go about making sure you don’t bring work home with you is to create a transitional routine that helps your brain disconnect from the workday. Some things to consider doing are exercising, listening to music or podcasts during your commute home, or even making a physical list of what needs to be done at work the next day and forgetting about it until you return back to your job. The whole point of all of this is to let go of the workday stress so that you won’t bring it home with you.
2. Make time for hobbies and passions
Plenty of people are quick to put their hobbies and passions aside in order to stay that extra hour at work to put those final touches on that presentation or finalize that project that’s been put on the back burner one too many times. However, this isn’t ideal. Take the time to paint, read, be a mentor, play video games, or whatever it is that makes you happy. Doing the things you are actually passionate about will bring fulfillment to your life. You’ll have something to look forward to after work. Also, doing what you love will help decrease stress.
3. Have a social life
Please. Please. Pleaaase make sure to actually have a social life. Don’t blow off plans with your loved ones because you’re staying late at the office again or because your work day was long and stressful. Being around loved ones can help take your mind off of work, and you’ll get to create new and fun memories with them. Some ways to make sure you maintain your social life would be to attend regular activities such as art classes, book clubs, or even weekly dinners with friends. You can even plan fun activities to do on a weekday so that you’ll have something to look forward to midweek, and you won’t even have to wait until the weekend to do something exciting!
4. Set work goals
It’s important to set some goals when it comes to your job. For example, write down what you need to do on a weekly basis, and then make tasks from that goal list and do a few of them each day. This way, you’ll be able to leave work and feel satisfied with finishing the tasks you planned for yourself. Just make sure to be realistic about what you can and cannot finish in a day and don’t wear yourself thin. If you happen to not finish your daily goals, put the leftover tasks on your to-do list for the next day and finish then first thing in the morning.
5. Set life goals
Just like with work goals, you should set some life goals. Make those plans to travel become a reality. Plan to buy a home or relocate to a new city or even a new country. Learn something new. Simply make sure you’re setting goals for yourself outside of work. The objective is to always be striving for personal growth. Take into consideration what is important to you in your personal life, and then make career choices based on those decisions. Only you can decide what you want for your life, so get to figuring all of that out and make it happen.
6. Make time for you
Last and certainly not least, make time for yourself. Although family, friends, and work are all important, your me time is equally as important. Take time to do something that you enjoy such as watching that TV show you’ve been meaning to watch, going to a new restaurant alone, taking a walk in the park, or even simply just be alone and do nothing. Set aside time to make sure you are taken care of whether that is mentally, physically, emotionally, and/or spiritually. Being in tune with yourself will help you maintain a healthy work and personal life. So, don’t skimp out on or feel bad for wanting that alone time.
Overall, if work-life balance is important to you, make sure to put in the effort to actually achieve it. You don’t have to wait to start incorporating some of these tips in your daily life. Choose one and start today!