How to achieve a healthy work-life balance

Do you feel like you never see your friends and family? Are you constantly taking care of business; working overtime, spending long hours in the workplace or being glued to your inbox after you get home? If so, you seriously need to reassess your life and consider what is needed to make it more balanced.

In today’s age, it is really difficult to achieve any form of balance in life. So why is this? Well, it seems that as the years go by, life becomes faster and faster. Computers, the internet and new gadgets have all provided us with the means to do things quicker, and the quicker we work, the more we try to cram into our day.

We seldom stop to smell the roses or get off the treadmill. We just keep going as if we are machines that cannot stop.

Studies have found that a bad work-life balance can lead to an unhappy, sad and even lonely life. It can affect relationships, family life and one’s own health.

So how do we create a healthy work-life balance?

Creating life balance within the workplace may be more complexed than one thinks. It needs to be addressed as part of a company’s overall implementation strategy and adopted as part of an organization’s culture.

Managing Work Life Balance says: "Flexibility, in where, when and how work is undertaken, is a priority for most employees at different times in their careers. If employers are to attract and retain staff, they need to offer and support flexibility at their workplace".

Here are a few ideas that both employees and organizations need to consider:

1. STOP and reflect. You need to take the time to think and assess what you are looking for when you think of a balanced lifestyle. Everyone is different and what this will mean for one person will be different to that of another.
2. Share your thoughts with your organization. If they do not understand what you are looking for, then they will not be able to accommodate your needs.
3. Organizations need to create a flexible and responsive corporate culture. Employers and employees need to develop a collaborative relationship that will deliver on the needs of both staff and employers. Where there is a need and want for workplace flexibility, it is important that staff members feel that they are being supported. This can result in increased morale and motivation. If action is taken and a strategy is implemented, it is likely to deliver positive results for all concerned.
4. Flexible work arrangements are key to attracting and retaining employees.This isn’t easy to implement, especially in large organizations, however I have been told that if planned and implemented correctly, the benefits are significant.
5. Understanding your employees’ childcare and eldercare responsibilities. Managing work and the needs of children or the elderly can be extremely stressful. Being flexible and supportive of those that have to care for others, can pay off in the long run.
6. Being flexible around work hours. Some employees may have increased travel times to get to work; whilst others may work better when they start and finish later.
7. Being flexible when it comes to the delivery of management and other staff training programs. This could include webinars, flexible mentoring programs or e-learning modules.
8. All roles being flexible. A new concept that has been implemented by organizations such as Telstra, ANZ Bank, and the ASX. It is something that needs to be supported by CEO’s, as this approach demands a massive shift in corporate culture, behaviour and attitudes. Managers and leaders also need to change their values and beliefs with regards to flexible working, and they need to be educated and supported whilst adopting this concept.
9. Ongoing communication. It is important that staff members are taken seriously and that organizations keep them in the loop, about what is available and what is being considered when it comes to flexible work arrangements.Evaluate along the way. With any new strategy, etc., it is important that you continue to assess and evaluate the success of the program being implemented. It is also important to continue evaluating your employees needs as they change. This is why open communication is so important.

Mentors Insync provides the right kind of mentoring as a solution to support employees. If you are interested in finding out more, please visit our website or contact us at: info@mentorsinsync.com.