Are you constantly occupied by work-related stress? Do you often feel that taking breaks is too much to ask for?
If your answer is “yes”, you are in dire need of bringing equilibrium between your personal and professional life.
In today’s fast-paced world, creating a balance between your work and personal life is very crucial. Failing to do so can result in unhealthy levels of stress.
A good work-life balance can provide a range of physical and mental health benefits, including greater satisfaction, lower levels of stress, and longer life expectancy.
Understanding kinesiology, the study of human movement and its impact on your health, will help you achieve and maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Here are more tips that can help you achieve and maintain a healthy work-life balance:
1. Redesign Your Mornings
Many people tend to hit the snooze button until the only thing left is to jump out of bed. As a result, running and rushing to work adds to a hectic commute.
If you follow a similar routine, it’s no surprise you often end up feeling overwhelmed and stressed even before your workday begins.
Instead, start your day on a positive note by redesigning your mornings.
Wake up at a fixed time. Reset your brain with simple meditation, which helps you deal better with random thoughts that contribute to your stress.
The next thing to do is exercise for at least 15 minutes. Regular exercise is helpful for your physical and emotional health.
Finally, a well-balanced breakfast will fill you up, give you energy, and improve cognitive function.
2. Maintain a To-Do List
Maintaining a proper to-do list helps you get a rough estimate of how long your tasks take per day, but it prioritizes your time as well.
Your to-do list has everything that you have to do, with the most important tasks at the top and the least important ones at the bottom. It helps you stay organized and mentally focused.
As you get things done, you will feel a sense of accomplishment, which motivates you to keep moving forward rather than feeling stressed.
You will start completing your work on time, which clearly is the indicator of achieving a work-life balance.
Figure out what you want your priorities to be, not what you think they should be.
3. Spend Some Quality Time with Family and Friends
Taking occasional breaks from work is important in restoring work-life balance.
Your leisure time is extremely fulfilling if spent well, especially if you spend it in the company of family or friends.
It gives you a unique opportunity to examine personal values and focus on what is important to you.
These fun moments help family members’ emotional bonds grow stronger.
Start by having a good chat at the dinner table or a board game in the evening. You can also try outside activities like going for walks.
As far as friends are concerned, I hang out with them at least twice a month. Throw small house parties for them and have friendly toasts. Or you can invite your friends over to watch a Super Bowl event.
4. Avoid Activities that Drain Your Time and Energy
Time and energy are the key factors that help you maintain a balance in your life. If you lack them, everything will spin out of control.
There are certain activities that take more time than they should or make you physically and mentally tired.
Try to avoid things that can easily derail you during working hours.
Although these activities may vary from person to person, there are some common time and energy drainers.
For example, emails, meetings, cluttered space, negative co-workers, repetitive tasks, unproductive relationships, and too many commitments.
5. Concentrate on One Task at a Time
Try not to make your work an endless treadmill of tasks. Focus on one task at a time.
As a matter of fact, human beings are essentially single-core processors, so to speak.
You can effectively check your emails, listen to your boss asking for a follow-up on a project, and take notes simultaneously.
What actually happens while trying to multitask, however, is your attention gets divided, which increases the time refocusing on more important tasks.
As a result, you are stressed and become less productive.
This is something you wouldn’t call a healthy work-life balance, would you? Single-tasking, on the other hand, allows you to sustain your focus and work through the complexities that come with certain tasks.
6. Delegate
Quite frankly, you cannot do every task that comes your way with finesse. If you try to do everything all by yourself, you might end up feeling stressed and overworked.
The busier you get with overwhelming work, the easier it is to be swept away into an unbalanced territory.
What you can do to fix this is delegate. There is no harm in asking for help if need be.
You can ask a co-worker to help you pick up some slack on an overdue project. The truth is we are productive and happier when we have a strong support system around us.
7. Know Your Expectations and Boundaries
It is important to know when it’s OK to say no or stop working. You need to set clear emotional and physical boundaries for yourself.
Since you work to sustain yourself and your family, you need to have respect for both work and personal life.
You may call them “rules” if you like, which should be there to maintain a proper functioning system. If those rules, boundaries, and expectations will affect some people, let them know.
Final Thoughts
Achieving a healthy work-life balance comes with many benefits.
Your physical and emotional health is boosted, your family finances are improved, and you develop a more positive attitude toward life.
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How Do You Achieve a Healthy Work-Life Balance?
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