This article was originally published on thegentlealbum.com, a sustainability and healthy living blog.
Tasks keep piling up, and it’s easy to get sucked into working longer hours. That’s why having work-life balance is becoming increasingly more important in this day and age. If we let work control our lives, we’ll never be able to take time for ourselves to relax. This is detrimental to our mind and our body. There doesn’t need to be a fine line between working and leisure time, but there needs to be some sort of balance.
Habit #1: They know how to indulge in self-care.
People who have achieved work-life balance know how to treat themselves well. They understand that in order to take care of their mental health, they need to let their mind relax. Also, they don’t let the thought of work distract them from enjoying their self-care activities. This time of recharge allows them to feel more refreshed to accomplish more of their goals.
Habit #2: Their goals are related to their passion.
These people are serious about aligning their goals with their passion. They strive to find the deeper meaning and purpose behind their work. Whether their goal is to get a job promotion, grow their social media, or start a business, it is something they look forward to. They stay away from doing activities that will not serve them a purpose towards meeting their goals.
Habit #3: They plan everything.
Planning allows them to be as efficient as possible. They plan their days, weeks, months, and even years as their long-term goals. Planning allows them to be intentional about what they choose to do. It’s also important to them because they can have a clear picture of how they will balance doing work and also leisure.
There are a few ways they plan. The first is to use an app that allows them to write down their to-do’s. A popular one is Notion. Another way is to handwrite their tasks on physical paper or digitally on a tablet. Both are just as effective; it’s just a matter of preference.
The digital planner that I personally designed can be downloaded for free!
Habit #4: They have a routine, but are flexible.
In addition to planning everything, they stick to a routine. The reason why they do this is because having a structured daily routine will allow them to know exactly what work they will be focusing on for the day. They stick to a routine because they don’t want to be sidetracked by other things and eventually work longer than they should have. Of course, these people are also flexible and if urgent matters arise, they will deviate a bit from their routine.
Habit #5: They make time for exercising.
People with work-life balance value their physical health. That’s why they are diligent about exercising and are willing to find time to fit it into their daily routine. It’s not only good for their body but also allows them to feel more energized for their workday. Even if their schedule is hectic and busy, they still try to find time for working out. However, they also understand that working out excessively is not great for their health so they will exercise in moderation.
Habit #6: They know when it’s time for a break.
Even though people with work-life balance know how to work hard and effectively, they also know when their body needs a mental break. They know that working with a cluttered mind is detrimental to their health and will slow down their productivity. Also, they don’t treat the break as a waste of time, but rather a time to regain the lost energy.
Habit #7: When working, they turn off all distractions.
They try to limit all distractions when they are working because distractions will only slow them down. That means they would turn on “do not disturb” on their electronic devices during times when they need to do heads-down work. Also, they will refrain from texting or going on social media apps.
Habit #8: They understand the value of time.
To achieve work-life balance, time is your most valuable asset. For people who have achieved work-life balance, they will completely understand. The hardest barrier to achieving a healthy balance of both work and leisure is the lack of time we have. Everyone has 24 hours in a day and these people make the most out of those 24 hours by being efficient whenever they can.
Habit #9: They limit multi-tasking.
A type of distraction is multi-tasking. They know that multi-tasking slows down their productivity and as a result, will need to work longer to get things done. They try to focus on one task at a time so that they can get more done in the day.
Habit #10: They don’t aim for perfection.
They don’t aim for perfection because they know that it’ll take valuable time away from them without huge gains. Whether they are creating a slide deck, working on a piece of artwork, or writing an article, they won’t search for the imperfections with a magnifying glass. Instead, they will be satisfied with the hard work they put into whatever they are doing and call it done when it is good enough.