More work-life balance? 5 practical ideas for doing so
Every day, you only have 24 hours to divide between work, leisure and sleep. Chances are, you often work longer than the number of hours specified in your contract. After all, the workload is increasing. Still, you want to be able to enjoy yourself with family and friends. You also need plenty of rest to recover and recharge your energy. You want a good work-life balance.
Want to take a first step toward more work-life balance? In this blog, I explain how to do this.
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> Schedule your free call nowBy proactively planning, you better anticipate what’s to come and keep a better overview of your tasks and activities, so you don’t run out of time at the end of your workday.
With these 5 tips and some science, you’ll understand better, avoid frequent overtime and maintain a healthy balance in your time commitment.
Causes of disturbed work-life balance
Greenhaus and Beutell describe a disturbed work-life balance as, “a form of inter-role conflict in which the pressures of the roles to be fulfilled in the work and private domains are to some extent incompatible” (p. 77).
In other words, participation in the family role is complicated by participation in the work role. There are three main dimensions within a disturbed work-life balance:
- Conflicts based on time. Time spent on one role can no longer be spent on another role. For example: working overtime at the office comes at the expense of spending time with your family.
- Conflicts based on effort. Work stress can cause symptoms such as tension, anxiety, fretting, irritation, etc., which are transferred to the private domain. For example: an employee who is stressed at work has difficulty letting go of it after work and continues to fret about it in the evenings to the detriment of performance in the family role.
- Conflicts based on behavior. Specific job-related behavior may be incompatible with expectations around behavior in the private role. For example, male managers are supposed to be confident, emotionally stable and objective at work. Instead, their family members expect them to be warm, entertaining, emotional and vulnerable in interactions with the partner and children.
5 tips for better work-life balance
1. Using your calendar smarter
Make your calendar (digital or paper) your personal external memory. Once it’s in your calendar, you can put it out of your mind. Don’t just write down your commitments and appointments with others, but also allocate time for all the chores you have to do that day or that week.
Look Ahead
Look as far ahead as possible and start with your annual planning, for example. Consider set targets, completion of projects, all kinds of deadlines and recurring work. But also put in your holidays and meetings, which are already known for the coming year, in your calendar.
Highlight peak and busy times in your work. That way you can keep an overview and see at a glance that it’s better not to schedule big jobs there.
Block your calendar
If others can also put appointments in your calendar, block the periods when you are not available. Reserve the time you want to spend on your projects and other tasks as an appointment (with yourself). Prioritize that as much as possible, even if a meeting request comes in!
2. Applying the 60-40 rule
Often your head is full before your schedule! Make sure you keep an overview and avoid an over-scheduled workday. After all, there are always questions and chores coming up in between.
Especially if your job responsibilities include a lot of ad hoc work, it is important to keep space open in your schedule for this. So only commit 60 percent of your time and keep the remaining 40 percent in your schedule open for unexpected things. Oh yeah, especially don’t forget to schedule your breaks.
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3. Something new in it? Then take out something old!
Consider the clothes in your closet. To prevent it from bulging and you can’t remember what’s hanging in there, it’s wise to decide each time you buy new clothes what can go out to create space. It’s the same with your calendar. Since your workday consists of only a limited number of hours, you will have to make choices as new tasks or chores are added
Consult with your supervisor and determine which tasks are priorities and which work you can delegate or drop. That’s how you keep an overview and keep working effectively.
4. Taking into account travel time, preparation and aftercare
When noting your outside appointments and meetings, also think about booking traveltime. Schedule enough time between your appointments to avoid being late or pressed for time. Also reserve time for your preparation tasks and any aftercare. Because if you don’t schedule that and the deadline is approaching, of course it will be overtime again!
5. Plan realistically
Many workloads arise from unrealistic planning. Estimating time is quite difficult. Most people underestimate the time they need to complete a task and, as a result, run out of time.
You can also be dreaded to a job/task because you think it will take a lot of time. And then it turns out that you finished it in no time because you were able to work with great concentration.
So rather build a margin into your planning. If you finish earlier, there’s always something to do or just have some extra breathing space. That way you really stand up for yourself and keep an excellent work-life balance.
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Your work-life balance is personal
With these tips you can start right away, while doing so, be a little kind to yourself. Not everything will immediately succeed in putting into practice. Read the tips again in a while and see what has worked for you and what you still want to change. In guarding your work-life balance, you are the person who has the controls.
Free introductory call,
Run into a lack of assertiveness or self-confidence?
Want to get rid of that, once and for all? Then my 1-on-1 coach approach is really something for you. Lets get acquainted first, no strings attached. See if we have a 'click' and if I can help you.
> Schedule your free call now