A successful career may be everything you ever dreamed of and provide you with a lot of fulfilment. However, when it begins to interfere with your personal life, it can become overwhelming and stressful.
You may feel like there is a need to be spending hours in the evenings and on weekends on your work, but respecting your own free time is essential for your overall wellbeing.
It is difficult for anyone to be efficient at so many things at once. Nowadays, many employers understand the consequences of burnout and want to prioritise employee health and happiness. Work cultures have thankfully changed. Keep reading to learn some useful tips to draw a line between work and play.
Understand Commitments
Work projects and assignments will often come flying at you from all directions during busy periods. Don’t neglect your home life responsibilities during this time either, such as date nights with your partner, attending your child’s play, or visiting a relative. Assess the absolute priorities and see if you have everything under control. If you have too much on your plate, don’t be afraid to acknowledge that some things are more important than others.
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Communicate and Say No When NecessarySet boundaries and indicate to your colleagues when you can and cannot do overtime hours. Have a clear idea of timelines and deadlines of new projects which are being assigned before you take on something new. Don’t be afraid to say that a particular deadline does not suit you if it conflicts with an existing commitment. Colleagues are generally understanding and will have no problem picking up the slack if the favour is returned to them in the future.
Off Time is Off
Ensure that you refresh yourself in the evenings, on weekends, and during your holidays. Avoid checking your phone for work emails or taking calls when not necessary. Be strict with yourself and tell colleagues that you should only be contacted when it is urgent if you are out of the office. Working in your off time can add on stress and anxiety about your workload which can most likely wait! If your colleagues cannot respect this, it may not be somewhere you want to consider working in the long run.
Work Productively When Working
You may worry that saying no to certain projects or not being available 24 hours a day will put you at a disadvantage compared to your colleagues when it comes to promotion. But it is important to bear in mind that the quality of work is far more important to employers than quantity of work, within reason.
With a more manageable workload for your life balance, you should feel less stress and work more productively on your assigned projects. Don’t forget to take a break when needed, to feel fully energised at all times.
Do you have a problem with colleagues interrupting your work flow? Consider working from home for the first hour of the day without any notifications on and then go to work. This way you will get a good chunk of work done and be available for more engaging discussions with colleagues later. Or maybe you are always working from home, in which case, read our great article on how to build virtual relationships when you can’t network face-to-face.
