Tunde is a natural go-getter. After getting a high-paying job right out of school at a leading private equity firm, he was committed to being the best. He worked extra hours, took on more tasks, and spent most of his weekends at the office. But, unfortunately, he did not have another life. It took a toll on his mental health and strained his relationships.
If you can relate to tunde’s struggles and think that the whole notion of a healthy work-life balance is a myth, you’re not the only one in the world who feels this way. US statistics reveal that 60% of employees think their lives are in shambles. Our goal in this article is to help you understand that a healthy work-life balance is not a myth and can be achieved by implementing the actionable tips provided later in this article. Let’s get started!
What is work-life balance?
A healthy work-life balance involves separating a person’s professional life from their personal life, such that one does not affect the other. This way, such persons can equally focus on building their careers and other important aspects of their lives.
In recent times, the employee benefits section of most job postings provides work-life balance as part of the perks. While this reinforces its importance, many employees still struggle with maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Whether you’re working on your days off or responding to an email while out with family, we’ve all experienced some work-related interruptions in our personal lives at some point.
Since working from home became the new normal, drawing a clear line between work and our personal lives has become difficult. This has resulted in a lot of employees feeling depressed, stressed, and feeling disconnected from the world, thereby affecting their productivity and commitment to their jobs.
The dangers of an unhealthy work-life balance affect both employees and organizations. Employees end up being stressed out as having their job interfere in every area of their lives can significantly affect their mental health. As an HR manager, ensuring that your organization offers a healthy work-life balance can help improve your business operation in several ways. You’ll find out more about that in the next section.
Why is maintaining a healthy Work-life balance important?
A healthy work-life balance is a significant driver of employee satisfaction and the resulting increase in productivity and performance in the workplace. The many benefits it offers to employees and employers include;
Promotes the quality of life of your employees
Many things make our lives worth living apart from work. They range from forming solid friendships and spending time with families to building healthy relationships and enjoying hobbies. Likewise, adopting a healthy work-life balance in your organization can improve your employees’ quality of life, allowing them time to participate in things that matter to them.
Increased Productivity
When your work environment does not promote a healthy balance between work and personal life, employees will likely miss work days and not perform optimally. In addition, work-imposed constraints significantly affect their productivity because they struggle with the guilt of fulfilling their obligations to those they are accountable to or feel disconnected from the rest of their work.
Promotes Physical and mental well-being
One of the many dangers of an Unhealthy Work-life balance is that you are left with employees struggling with their mental health or dealing with one physical illness or the other due to the long hours they spend working. So if you’re looking to promote your employees’ wellness, clearly defining their work hours and sticking with them would be a great place to start.
Increased Talent Attraction and Retention Rate
It’s no news that employees are now looking for organizations that offer a work-life balance, and talents are switching jobs to have time to engage in activities that promotes their overall well-being. So, if you don’t want to lose all your best hands and go extinct, focus on promoting a balanced work environment.
How to achieve a healthy work-life balance?
Now that you know that a healthy work-life balance is attainable and why it is crucial, here are some actionable steps to get your Work-life balance in check.
- Prioritize time management
This is the first step towards achieving a healthy balance. For example, you usually work on weekends because of tasks that must be completed during the week. Make a to-do list of what you must do when you clock in. This way, you can direct your energy towards completing them on time.
- Take care of your mental and physical well-being.
It would be best if you were intentional about your health because, as noted by Heather Monahan, founder of the career mentoring group #BossinHeels, prioritizing your health makes you a better person and employee. Ensure you go for regular checkups, and do not hesitate to call in sick when you’re down. In addition, try incorporating exercise into your daily routines and eating healthy. If you feel you’re feeling burned out, make use of your paid leave time to reboot.
- Learn to say No
Learning to say no can be challenging, but it’s something you must be comfortable with if you’d like to set boundaries. Prioritizing your daily work deliverables would be best before deciding whether to take on more work.
- Do the things you love
Never make the mistake of sacrificing the thing you love because of your job. Whether it’s spending time with your family, hanging out with friends, taking a vacation, or even treating yourself to something nice, do what makes you happy. After all, you work so hard to leave all you’ve worked to your next of kin to blow off.
Final Thoughts
A healthy work-life balance is not a myth; having your job interfere in every area of your life is not normal. You should be intentional about maintaining a healthy balance, and if you require assistance at any point, do not hesitate to reach out to your manager or people operations team. We hope you found this article helpful. If you’d like more business and professional tips, do well to check back.
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