Is your business taking over your life? Does an overwhelming workload prevent you from spending quality time with family and friends or pursuing your hobbies? A healthy work-life balance is a manager or business owner’s dream, yet so few of us manage to achieve it. This is evident when we look at recent statistics on this subject; in 2021, 60% of Americans reported a poor work-life balance due to a lack of work-life and home-life boundaries. These statistics also revealed that ‘people who worked 55 hours or more per week had 1.3 times higher risk of stroke compared to those who work the standard 40 hour week’.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have gained a renewed perspective on the importance of maintaining a good work-life balance. As many contracts are changing from office-based to hybrid roles or remote work, setting boundaries between your work and home life is more important than ever. You might be thinking, ‘this is all well and good, but how do I achieve this elusive balance?’ This article includes a few of our top tips for how to balance work and life.
Hire contractors or freelancers
As your business develops, it is very important to delegate specific tasks or aspects of your business to other workers. You can pay a contractor or freelancer to handle the tasks that you no longer have time for, or are not specialised enough to carry out yourself.
You may see a short-term decrease in profit when you first pay a freelancer or contractor, but in the long term, they can help you achieve a healthy work-life balance. Contractors and freelance workers will grow with the company as and when needed; if the company grows, you can hire more freelancers or contractors. However, if you no longer require certain tasks to be completed or the company begins to struggle, you can let go of zero-hour workers without too much hassle.
Plan your time
If you neglect your family, partner, friends or other commitments outside of work, this can cause serious issues that will permeate your personal life. Burying yourself in your career when personal troubles occur will only worsen your work-life balance, damaging your productivity in the long term. You will have no business to return to if you don’t make time for your personal wellbeing.
One tip is to schedule a particular time slot each day for ‘me-time’, family time or time for your partner. For example, this could mean that after 7pm you turn off your phone and emails and give loved ones your undivided attention. Although planning can sometimes be tedious, it is one of the most effective ways to achieve a healthy work-life balance.
Scheduling on the go
Creating a cohesive schedule of your daily to-do list and downtime with friends and family can reduce your anxiety about your workload. Once you have a clear idea of what your day or week will look like hour-by-hour, you can work efficiently to maximise your productivity as a business owner or manager.
There are some brilliant free apps for managing your workload and employee schedule out there, including:
As well as paid subscriptions and apps such as:
Maintain your personal wellbeing
Exercise
When prioritising your tasks for the day, exercise can too often end up at the bottom of the list. This is especially true if one of your clients has asked you to complete a task within a short deadline. However, to maintain a healthy work-life balance, you need to make sure that your health receives as much attention as your client base or profit margins. The benefits of exercise are ten-fold, including but not limited to:
- Improving memory and brain function
- Lowering blood pressure
- Aiding your sleep pattern
- Reducing feelings of anxiety
- Increasing your lifespan
You don’t always have to exercise for hours each day. A quick walk just to stretch your legs for half an hour during a lunch break can do wonders for your personal wellbeing. Not only will exercise make you feel great, but it will also boost your self-esteem and improve your productivity at work.
Mental health
When you overwork your body and mind by dedicating all of your time to your business, your mental health will suffer the consequences. Remember to stay in touch with your interests, hobbies and social life to maintain a positive work-life balance.
If you are struggling to find wellness activities that you enjoy, here are a few of our suggestions:
- Meditation
- Yoga
- Cooking or baking
- Reading
- Journalling
- Gardening
Being a business owner or manager can be taxing, and you may feel as if times of stress weigh heavy on your shoulders. Nevertheless, practising even the most basic of self-care rituals such as good sleep hygiene, turning off your phone and completing a skincare routine can do wonders for your work-life balance. Getting a healthy amount of sleep is vital for maintaining your personal wellbeing, energy levels, attention span and productivity as a company manager or business owner.
Improving business practice with Precision Management Consulting
Learning how to balance work and life is just one factor of great business management. If you would like to receive more management or financial advice tailored to your business needs, reach out to our professional team of consultants to find your business solution today.