7 Steps To Achieve Work/life Balance

 

Finding the right balance between work and the rest of your life can be a challenge. We've pulled together tips to help you make sure you work to live, rather than live to work.

1. Be flexible. More and more employers offer flexible working conditions
. If starting earlier in the day or working from home would help, ask your employer if it's possible. They'll benefit from your increased focus and commitment if you're working in a way that suits your personal circumstances.

2. Manage your time well. You might spend 11 hours at work, but if four of them are spent chatting to colleagues, writing personal emails or researching holidays then it's not a productive or healthy situation. Keep a strong focus on work at work, leave on time and use those extra hours to enjoy life.

3. Say no with a smile. There's no point volunteering for every project if the quality of your work is going to suffer. Saying no firmly but politely shows you've got a clear understanding of your priorities.

4. Take care of yourself. Remember to keep your energy levels up with a proper lunch break (don't just snack on crisps), go home at a decent hour and never check work emails in bed. If you let your health take a back seat to your job, the quality of your work will go downhill and you'll end up even more stressed.

5. Schedule in fun. This helps stop your work from eating into your personal life. If every Wednesday you want to leave on the dot at five to go to a gym class or meet friends, then make it happen.

6. Make work your friend, not your enemy. Seek out tasks and projects that you particularly enjoy doing. If you let your managers know that you're good at something and enjoy doing it, they're likely to give you more of the same.

7. Develop your skills. Take advantage of any training opportunities available. Developing your skills will help you to do your job faster and more efficiently.