How Can I Balance Work and Personal Life?

If you suspect that a rebalancing of your work and personal life is in order, you're not alone. Many people struggle to separate the two, much to the detriment of work or personal relationships. Recognizing that a division between work and personal life is important can be the first step toward improving your situation, but you will need to go further than that: analyzing your daily habits, eliminating time-consuming errands and activities that are not rewarding, and scheduling downtime for yourself are all important steps toward maintaining balance between the two parts of your life

A busy schedule sometimes simply cannot be avoided, and work and personal life can both contribute to that busy schedule. Make a list of common activities or errands you perform, and reorder that list according to which items are most important and which are least important. Consider eliminating the unimportant errands, and outsourcing the errands that are somewhat important to other people. You should only take care of the most important errands or activities; this will increase your free time and help eliminate wasted time that can be used for other, more important things as well as relaxation.

Of course, relaxation is a vital component of work and personal life, and it may be necessary for you to schedule such downtime. Think about setting an hour or two throughout the day in which you are forbidden from checking e-mails, making work phone calls, or doing other stressful activities. During this time, take a few moments to sit and relax, read a book, or simply watch a television show. Allowing your mind to relax and reset will make it more productive throughout the rest of the day, and it will help maintain personal relationships by affording you the opportunity to spend time with friends and family. Remember that overworking or over-scheduling recreational activities can harm important relationships in both work and personal life, and you can end up alienating people if you do not make time for them.

Leaving work and not thinking about it until the next day can be difficult for many people, but it may be necessary to maintain your health and productivity. Learning to say no to extra tasks or bringing work home is an important step toward ensuring a proper balance between work and personal life; remember that downtime and relaxation at home is just as important, if not more important, than finishing up that one last project or report that can wait until the next day of work.