Most of us aren’t living to work. We’re working to live. Our jobs are essential because they help us pay the bills, send our kids to school, and save for retirement. But at the end of the day, there is so much life to enjoy outside of work.
Setting boundaries and cultivating a healthy work/life balance can help you make the most of work and play. Not sure where to start? Here are some tips to help:
Stick to Office Hours
Try to stick to your scheduled office hours as much as possible. Of course, there are always circumstances that require a little more time on the clock. But when you’re looking at a standard workload, do your best to get the job done, check in with the team, and close the laptop. The project you wanted to jumpstart can wait until tomorrow.
Take Time to Actually Unplug
It’s often a reflex to say, “call if you need me.” But sometimes, you need to genuinely unplug. Turn the phone off, put the laptop away, and take a break. Use your vacation time to do whatever it is that makes you happy. Travel, paint your house, visit a family member, or just simply take a few days to relax. It’s your time to enjoy life, uninterrupted.
Separate Your Workspace from Personal Space
This one’s for all the remote (and hybrid) workers out there. If your home is also your office, do your best to separate your workspace from your personal space. Try not to work in your bedroom, living room, kitchen, or any other area where you typically spend a lot of free time. Instead, try to dedicate a space in your home to work.
Preferably, this will be a quiet, well-lit room that is closed off from the rest of the house. If your home isn’t equipped with such an area, try to set your workspace up in the morning and take it down after office hours. For example, if your dining room is the best place to get work done, set your laptop up in the morning and store it on a shelf or in a drawer in the evening. The further out of sight, the better.
Lean on Your Team
Did you dread group projects in grade school? If you’re living with a, “to get it done right, you have to do it yourself” mentality, this tip may challenge you. To maintain a healthy work/life balance, you must lean on your team.
Don’t try to do everything yourself. That’s how burnout happens. And burnout? It leads to stress and bitterness. Build trust with your team by encouraging collaboration and transparency. Then, when it’s time to unplug for a bit, you can have confidence that the work will continue without you.
Make Time for What You Love
Having something to look forward to can change your entire outlook on a day or week. So, make time for something special and schedule it into your work calendar. Yes, even if it falls after work hours.
For instance, maybe you’re a musician and want to schedule an hour for practice every evening. If you’re a parent, you could add your child’s soccer game to your calendar. Or maybe, the weather is going to be agreeable this weekend and you want to take a hike.
Schedule it all. This approach will keep you accountable, helping you to truly honor your personal time, while allowing your team to see when you’ll be unavailable.
Learn to Say ‘No’
The word ‘no’ often implies negativity. It’s what we say to our dog when they steal food from the counter or tear a shoe to shreds. But, ‘no’ can also be honest and empowering.
When you’ve got too much on your plate and yet another project comes through needing your attention, it’s okay to say, “I don’t have time to dedicate to that right now.” No one knows your workload and what you can handle better than you, so it’s important to learn when it’s time to say ‘no.’
Don’t wait to establish boundaries like the ones we’ve outlined here. The sooner you set these standards, the better equipped you will be to take control of your time and make the most of each day.
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What work/life balance strategies work best for you? Share them with the community in this thread.