--EV Williams, co-founder of Medium and Twitter
In any health related and sometimes business theory courses you will learn about work-life balance or finding balance in your life. It's pretty much all about how you allocate your time. Depending also on your age you may not value work-life balance as much as other people. However, starting back in the late 1970's and early 1980's the balance between work and outside work activities began being a very important topic. The generation at the time began valuing outside work activities more and realizing that what job you have isn't always what matters in life. They began spending more time at home, spending time with family and friends and enjoying life.
You may be in a point of your life right now where school and work are the only things that matter. It's okay if you are, I've been like that and am currently struggling with that now. Sometimes, there is a lot of pressures to do well in school, get that high G.P.A and to work at the same time. You can burn yourself out doing that. I know, I've been there. I have tried the university full-time and working 40 hours a week grind. It's not fun and you can really damage yourself mentally and physically.
Now you may also be thinking, "it's okay if I'm stressed all the time. It's only for right now". Sometimes yes that is true. It is only for a little while. However, sometimes when you start thinking like that, it goes on a lot longer than you were originally planning for it go on for. That's why finding a balance is key. Living life to the fullest and valuing outside work times are very important to yourself and the people around you. It gives you a chance to recharge and not worry about work. It's important to value your body and your mind.
Think of life as a triangle. One side you have work, the other side you have health and the third side you have relationships. You want this to be an equilateral triangle. Any other triangle is simply not going to do here, You need to find that perfect balance between work/school, life, and relationships. It all depends on who you are. Sometimes the triangle is going to be all over the place, but for the most part all sides should equal. Yes, a career is important. Yes, relationships are important. Yes, health is important. Allocate your time daily towards all three sides of the triangle. Things will be much better than. You'll be happier at work/school if you're happy with your relationships and health.
Unfortunately, I do not have a method of how to get to this work-life balance. I'm still trying to figure it out myself, but thinking things through and understanding what you yourself needs is how to go about this. Don't be afraid to say yes or no in any situation. Although, there are some small steps you can take to find this balance.
1. Always make sure to get your sleep and about 25-30 minutes of exercise a day. That is going to help with your health side so much more. This is keeping your body in good standing. Eating healthy for most meals will help with that too.
2. Have time for your family, friend, and pets. Always try to put an hour or two each day for those relationships you have. The report due next week can wait. Recharge yourself, laugh, and have fun for some time during the day.
3. Give some outside time into work. If you do have to work on work at home, only let it take up a bit of time. Give about an hour or less of your own time to focus just on the work that needs to be done. Set a timer and don't look at your phone. Just get the work that you can get done, done. That way the rest of your time can be used when it's needed.
At the same time, it's different for everyone. Just make sure to understand your limits and follow with how your body feels. It's not good to live with stress everyday. It can cause some serious problems for your health and well- being. Find that balance between life and work and things will become easier over time.
That's just my little blurb this week on work-life balance. If you're struggling with this or have in the past, what have you tried to help keep everything balanced? What are you struggling with right now? Let's talk about it!
Thanks for reading!
Jessie xx
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