We are becoming busier each coming year. We might have gotten a break during the quarantine period last year, but more people are becoming engaged with work despite being at home as the economy restarts. A life after quarantine can throw many off their work-life balance, and maintaining it can be a serious challenge. However, we are here to help you get back on the saddle. Here are some simple ways you can keep your work-life balance during this pandemic.
Start Plotting Your Time Depending on Urgency
Urgency gets us stressed. There is no doubt about that. The idea of urgent projects reaching their deadlines can make our hearts pound and our hands tremble. However, if appropriately planned and plotted in your calendar, most projects can be quickly handled. This is why you should start plotting your days, hours, and minutes depending on urgency.
You can create your own labels that are appropriate to your lifestyle. You can label a particular project “urgent and important” and decrease the sense of urgency and importance from there. Additionally, you can mark a task as “reaching its deadline,” “almost within its deadline,” and “within its deadline.” It offers the same sense of urgency but has different words. This all depends on what makes you feel comfortable. Just make sure that the labels are transparent enough for you to understand.
Moreover, you must have a set amount of work hours regardless if a project is urgent or not. You always need to go to work during your work hours and leave or stop once you’ve reached the end of it. This gives you time to regroup and recuperate, ready for the next workday.
Plot Your Personal Time
Most people think that their personal time should be done the moment they feel very stressed. By then, the stress would have turned into varying mental problems such as anxiety and depression. You shouldn’t wait until you’ve reached this point. You should always plot your personal time alongside the projects you might have.
Consider having your personal time near a time when a project is supposedly completed. Think of it as a reward for a job well done. What you do during your personal can come in all forms, but nothing beats a good spa day. A whole day spent in the spa can make you feel relaxed and refreshed for the next days ahead. The best part of spending a day in the spa is that it can hit all your needs, massage, makeover, or a hot relaxing bath. You can never go wrong with a personal day such as that.
Declutter Your Workspace
Increasing clutter can lead to a tremendous amount of stress. Also, the more mess you have, the more time you’ll need to clean it, so this can essentially throw away plans you might have for the day and eventually ruining your work-life balance. Take out any clutter you might have right now before you do anything else.
This includes your digital workplace. Arrange files and folders on your desktop for easier access in the future. One way to keep clutter out of your workspace is always to have a trash bin around. It doesn’t have to be big. It can be one of those small ones since you mostly need to throw away paper thrash. Additionally, you can also make it a habit for you to clean up every time you’ve finished work. By doing this, you don’t need to schedule a general clean-up of your workspace.
Health First, Always
If you’re feeling unwell both physically and mentally, then maybe it’s time for you to take a day away from your work. Many people nowadays are essentially working themselves to their death, which can be a very depressing thought. However, most of these people usually have a choice. They can choose to unplug and prioritize their health and what they feel. Remember that you always have this choice whether if you love your job or not. Don’t force your body and mind to do something you clearly can’t do that day.
Put Your Support Group in the Center
Lastly, your support group should be in the middle of all these things. Your support group can come in many forms, such as your family, friends, and colleagues. You should always give time to these people and encourage yourself to be with them at least once a week. They are critical to your work-life balance. If you don’t think you have a support group, then it’s about time to join one. There are many support groups out there that may fit you. It’s all about giving yourself time to find them.
So here are simple ways you can earn and maintain an excellent work-life balance. Remember that there is no perfect way to do this because of how random life can be. But eventually, once you’ve got all these things set up, you’ll start to see some order in your otherwise random life.
