Angel investor and business mentor Mark Lyttleton realises more than most the considerable pressures involved in establishing, running and scaling a business. This article will outline the importance of achieving a healthy work-life balance, exploring how focussing too much on work not only impacts personal relationships but also has a detrimental impact on productivity too.
A healthy work-life balance does not necessarily equate to a straight 50/50 split between work and leisure. A good balance can mean rather different things to different people. Ultimately, it involves achieving a split between work and homelife that leaves the individual content and fulfilled in both areas.
A good work-life balance enables the individual to:
- Enjoy hobbies and spend time with family and friends while still having time to meet deadlines at work
- Have enough time in the day to eat well, exercise and get enough sleep
- Switch-off from work when they arrive home
In reality, achieving a healthy work-life balance that is sustainable in the long-term can be challenging for many people, complicated by factors such as health difficulties, caring responsibilities or a demanding employer.
Many individuals normalise being under sustained, extreme stress or working excessively long hours, particularly if they have been doing it for a long time and all of their colleagues are doing it too. Workplace habits and assumptions can become very deep-rooted unless employees take a step back every once in a while.
Some people are not comfortable speaking up to their employer and asking for changes. They may be on a zero-hour contract for example or need to work long hours to earn a sufficient income to meet their outgoings and support their family. Nevertheless, experts recommend regularly reassessing the work-life balance by following five simple steps.
- Employees should reflect on any stress or unhappiness they are feeling and the possible cause. How are these negative feelings impacting their personal life and career? What are they prioritising and what are they losing out on? It often takes a major life event, such as the loss of a close relative or the birth of a child, to make people reassess their priorities and take action.
- Pay attention to feelings. Now that they are more aware of their situation, the worker should consider how it makes them feel. Are they happy and fulfilled or resentful and angry? Self-awareness helps the individual to better identify necessary changes.
- This requires careful consideration of what needs to change. For example, it may be the case that working long hours is leaving little time left to spend with family and friends, with personal relationships suffering as a result.
- Consider alternatives. Is there something at work they can change to help them meet their new priorities?
- Take action. This could entail turning the phone off when leaving the office, requesting flexible hours or even a change of job or career.
People often see work-life balance as a trade-off between time spent at work and time spent on social activities. In an ideal world, all employees would have time to indulge in activities that nourish them as people after work, such as spending time with friends and family or engaging in their favourite hobby.
Achieving a healthy work-life balance is crucial for employees and business leaders alike, providing precious down-time and helping people to stay healthy and energised. In addition, maintaining an amicable balance in the long-term drastically reduces the risk of burnout, which not only impacts an individual’s personal life.
