Work and a career are an important part of many of our lives, from helping us to pay the bills to giving us a sense of purpose.
However, it’s important to remember that work is just a part of our lives. While it may feed into many aspects of life, it’s important to find a balance that gives us some time away from the stresses of the office to enjoy other aspects of our personal lives.

What is a work/life balance?


A work/life balance varies from person to person. However, it’s essentially the amount of time and focus a person gives their work versus other aspects of their life

Of course everyone’s priorities change depending on a range of factors. For example, age can make your balance very different.

If you’re in your twenties or thirties, you may have strong commitments to building a family life whilst, at the same time, focus on growing your career.

If you’re in your fifties and sixties, on the other hand, your focus may be on more personally meaningful and purposeful activities, which may not have been present earlier in life.

Whatever you do to establish your work/life balance, it’s vital to create it and keep to it whenever possible.

Why do I need it?


In the current economic climate, where the pressures to work harder than ever are constant, the need to unwind from work can be crucial.

It’s human nature to want to feel in control of the conditions that affect your life, and not being able to can prompt a range of negative reactions including:

Work burn out: A person who’s worked too long and too hard will often simply burn themselves out, both personally and professionally. This can potentially cause problems with your employer should they see you display a lack of interest, a short temper or difficulty with others. This issue could prove costly to you, as it could lead to disciplinary action or, in the worst case, even dismissal.

Stress: A person who doesn’t achieve a satisfying work/life balance can end up generating extra stress in their life. As we all know, stress, when allowed to linger, often causes side effects that can lead to health issues and personal distress.

These conditions can take their toll on any individual and may end up having physical impact, causing a break down in relationships and impeding work performance. In other words, a lack of balance will create problems that can be costly physically, emotionally and financially.

How can I achieve a better work/life balance?


The first step to achieving a better work/life balance is to think about the demands on your current professional and personal life. Do you ever find yourself with time to yourself? Maybe you have too much free time. Or none at all.

Of course these considerations will vary for every individual. Regardless, you should make a conscious effort to establish your own set of rules that allow you to strike the right balance between work and life. Ways to do this include:

- Creating realistic boundaries between work and non-work items
- Prioritising tasks and events within both
- Set time aside for you: schedule an activity in your free time or block out a time period that’s for you to relax and enjoy yourself – it can even be as simple as not checking work emails when you’re at home
- Asking friends and family if they feel you dedicate too much time to one or the other.


What are the benefits of work-life balance?

 

Your health and wellbeing will improve

Overworking isn’t just putting you at risk of being a ‘very dull boy/girl’ – it could also be affecting your health.

In fact, if you’re sacrificing too much of your time for the sake of work, it won’t take long to start feeling the consequences – whether it’s through increased stress, constant bouts of illnesses due to a weakened immune system, or non-stop exhaustion.

That doesn’t mean you have to stop working hard though. Many professions require a lot of time and effort, and sometimes large amounts of downtime just isn’t possible if you’re determined to do well. But it’s all about finding that balance.

By recognising your own individual triggers and understanding when you’re overdoing it, you’ll be able to recognise the early warning signs before you start burning out.

You’ll be more productive

Having a healthy work-life balance isn’t just essential to your well-being – it also boosts your productivity.

From finally getting around to redecorating the house because you switched off your work phone for the weekend, to completing a work task you’ve been stuck on for weeks after being able to go back to it with a fresh mindset – creating a good balance between your work life and your personal life will allow you to be more productive in both areas.

And work-life balance doesn’t always refer to a solid line between work and play.

Whether it’s by working from home when you need quiet space for a project, or dedicating time to group brainstorm sessions where collaboration is necessary – creating your own balance between team work and head-down work is equally essential to achieve productivity in all aspects of your job.

You’ll have more ‘you time’

It’s easy to make excuses when you rarely get free time.

And whether your devotion to overtime has meant you still haven’t taken that photography course you’ve been interested in for months, or working weekends has caused you to miss 99% of your yoga classes – you shouldn’t have to sacrifice that much of yourself to do a good job.

After all, work isn’t the only place you can learn and develop – and from quantifying your skillset with a qualification, to learning a new language, taking up a hobby, or even just reading a book – making the most of your time will add some much needed variation – and enjoyment – into your life.

So not only will improving your work-life balance give you more control over what you do, you’ll also be able to use your dedicated ‘you time’ to do things you’ve been putting off for years.

You’ll stop missing out

Those who overwork have one thing in common – and that’s that everything in their lives except work probably isn’t going as well as it could.

Common signs and symptoms include: always being the guy/girl who misses the best social gathering of the week, their anniversary, their child’s first word, or a really funny ‘you just had to be there’ moment – possibly involving their housemate, a dishwasher, and a family sized tub of vanilla yoghurt. But we digress…

Whether it’s by sticking to a nightly dinner with your partner or a weekly film night with your best friend, there’s always time to actually have a life outside of work.

Remember: achieving a good work-life balance often comes down to your own ability to prioritise according to what’s most important to you.


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Thanks for the info. Henceforth I'll try to achieve a work balance life.

Sad enough, most of us do not have work-life balance especially those working in Lagos.

It is just work, work, work and even without money

interesting....

.

You want to achieve work-life balance... simple. DONT work at AUDIT FIRMS especially KPMG and Deloitte

Sometimes, it's very difficult to achieve this work-life balance because you work with a boss that close much later than the official closing time.
For example, during the official working hours of 8am to 4pm, in a typical government office, so many visitors come to disturb the boss' train of thought and work pile up. This has made some bosses to clear their tables by staying in office till 7pm or even 8pm. Now, this bosses has under them junior officials, secretaries and clerks who wouldn't be able to leave too.
In this scenario, there's really nothing much the junior officers can do to significantly balance their work - life except the boss take measures on his own to adjust. You can't force him to do it.

5 - 8 am traffic

8 - 5 PM Work

6-8 traffic

Monday to Friday.

No matter how you plan you can never balance it unless you want to be jobless.

Nice write up op....but Nigerians in a bid to make money and escape poverty, dont really wanna know.

MadamDearest:
You want to achieve work-life balance... simple. DONT work at AUDIT FIRMS especially KPMG and Deloitte

I second you ma'am!

armadeo:
5 - 8 am traffic

8 - 5 PM Work

6-8 traffic

Monday to Friday.

No matter how you plan you can never balance it unless you want to be jobless.

Bros...Saturday is included for those of us that works with private sector

Let balance it with beer

armadeo:
5 - 8 am traffic

8 - 5 PM Work

6-8 traffic

Monday to Friday.

No matter how you plan you can never balance it unless you want to be jobless.

For most people, the concept of work-life-balance is simply a myth.

Work-life balance is just a fantasy...
It does not exist.

Nice write up though.


Just Donelli

armadeo:
5 - 8 am traffic

8 - 5 PM Work

6-8 traffic

Monday to Friday.

No matter how you plan you can never balance it unless you want to be jobless.

kikiki Lol don't mind the Op, surely, he had not lived in Lagos, people like me have been living their lives like that right from Primary school level, and we talking 80's/90's o and the traffic is still there till date Lagos na waaa

Isn't work-life balance often over rated? In my years of research, the quest to achieve a balance in itself creates an imbalance. Some people are workerholics and the idea of focusing a little more on other spheres of life is scary. similarly, working more may just be a psychological response to some events, e.g breakups. Although, most people say WLB is relative, the instruments for measuring it is always the same, with questions like "I spend more time at work than at home" My submission thus, WLB should be less gargantuan an issue to us.

Naff24:

Bros...Saturday is included for those of us that works with private sector

Saturday is like Monday morning for us.

Nice write up.keep it up!

I do this, a lot. Sometimes I just close my laptop, leave it at work and go home without taking anything with me. Most times I do it on Fridays. I then sleep throughout the Saturday and eat all through. It really helps me relax before the Monday.

Ok

odeebee:




Saturday is like Monday morning for us.

Gaskiyah

I work from Monday to Friday and rest on Saturday and anything that will make me go to work this two days is only on emergency

Thank you for this important message you shared with us. I'll work on it as a person