Work Life Balance
DO:
- Ensure you wake up early enough to give you enough time to enjoy your breakfast and get ready for the day without having to rush.
- Be organised – spend a short amount of time putting some structure into your day so that you can use your time wisely. Prioritise important tasks and allocate time for them to avoid getting caught procrastinating or spending time on unnecessary tasks.
- Ensure you take your lunch break. If possible try take a walk outside for a stretch, and some fresh air for a change of environment.
- Don’t put too much on your plate. Ask for support from colleagues/managers when your workload gets too much. Learn to say no.
- Turn off work related communications. If you work from home, try do so from a different room so that you are able to enjoy the rest of your living space without being reminded of work.
- Exercise can be a really great way of managing stress.
- Plan holidays or activities so that you have things to look forward to.
- Try maintain a regular bed time routine at the same time every night so that you get enough sleep to tackle the day ahead.
DON’T:
- Grab your breakfast on the go whilst checking emails and dealing with phone calls
- Jump from one task to another without considering their priority or the length of time they will take – you’ll end up feeling dissatisfied having not completed any tasks.
- Work through your lunch break and eat unhealthy convenience food.
- Take on everything that comes your way to try look willing. You may end up shooting yourself in the foot when you’ve taken on more than you can chew and colleagues/managers continue expecting more and more from you.
- Get into a habit of staying late or taking work home with you
- Skip exercising or socialising as you are too busy with work
- Avoid booking holidays/time off for fear of the amount of work you’ll have to get back to.
- Stay up late trying to get a head start on work for the next day, you’ll only end up feeling tired and unproductive.