Are you happy at work and at home?
Surrounded by newborn lambs, primroses, birdsong, and daffodils, it is easy to think about work-life balance and being happy at both work and at home.
If you are like me, in quieter moments, let your mind dream. You see a rosier, happier face in your imagination. Not the drawn one with heavy black rings that actually reflected back at you this morning.
Can this really be possible? Can you feel less tired, less stressed, more in control, and healthier? The answer is of course, yes, if you are committed to making it happen. Work-life balance isn’t a pipe dream. It is possible and permissible if you make it happen. Key points to get you started:
There isn’t a one size fits all approach.
What works for your partner, colleague, friend or neighbour, won’t necessarily work for you. It’s important to get a birds’ eye view – see the big picture. From this vantage point, it’s easier to understand what’s working, what isn’t working, what’s missing, and what needs to change so you are happy at work and at home.
Work-life balance doesn’t mean equal balance in all areas of your life.
Rather it is prioritising those things that energise you. It may take hard choices, what do you need to give up so you can start doing more rejuvenating activities?
Don’t wait hoping something will happen.
The place of tranquillity you long for won’t just appear. You have to actively make it happen and then ensure it continues. It may take a night, weekend, or a set of coaching sessions to get started but you’ll never regret taking the decision to make it happen.
Doing and Being.
Work-life balance is about who you are as well as what you do. Rest is vital but it doesn’t necessarily mean sitting on the sofa and doing nothing. Time-out needs to be energising, something that renews and refreshes your mind, body, and emotions.
You may choose to spend it reading a book, visiting an elderly relative, or training for a half marathon but the difference is that it is how you have chosen to spend your time. You are not fulfilling an obligation to someone or something else.
Sometimes you may need to be creative about how you invest time and money.
What do you need most at this point? Do you need to save for a two-week holiday or will you feel less stressed if the money is spent on the regular use of a health club or the monthly visiting of friends?
Developing and maintaining a healthy work-life balance will take focus, tenacity, and, sometimes, courage. It’s a challenge, but ask yourself; ‘do I want to carry on the way I am?’ Don’t look back and regret.
Download your Free Work-Life Balance Template to help you develop your own healthy balance. If you need some help with goal setting then feel free to contact me.