Work-life balance: a belief or a fact.

 


Work-life balance is a term used for the idea that you need time for both work and other aspects of life, whether those are family-related or personal interests. Now, this leads to the question; is there really a balance between work and life?

In reality, there is no balance. Is it possible to achieve one? Absolutely yes!

This piece is going to take you through some myths about work-life balance and at the same time suggest a few ways of attaining a balance.

It is more of achieving balance

It would be great if work-life balance exists. No matter how hard you try, there will be times when work bleeds into your personal life and vice versa. The mere reason that you leave work every day does not mean that you are totally free from work. You may have to respond to an email or even revise your schedule. If the balance does not exist, then how do we go about it? For Jeff Bezos, it is work-life harmony. It is not about dividing your life into sections but thinking about them as a whole. If one is determined to maintain harmony in life, it is very much possible to achieve that without lagging in one’s performance in any aspect. All that needs to be done is to avoid certain things you shouldn’t waste time on, and add elements of flexibility into your mindset towards work.

Technology will give you free time.

Automation has made life much more relaxed. However, it is not a guard to add more hours to your day magically. For instance, technology will help with scheduling, automated replies to clients etc but can not help you have a meeting with investors. At some point too you will have to respond to clients. In other words, technology is an assist. But, it is not going to do everything for you precisely. You still need to put in a little effort.

Everything has to be slated.

Essential tasks and appointments always go into the calendar. But, that does not mean you have to schedule your entire life literally. It is unrealistic and adds more stress to your already hectic life. And, it has been found that people are happier when leisure activities happen spontaneously. So while you should use your calendar to keep your life organized, don’t overdo it. Leave blank spaces so that you can grab coffee with a friend or sit back and process your day.

Corporate success is happiness.

This is not just a myth of work-life balance, but one of our dreams. Work hard, make money and you will be happy. Although many know there is little correlation to the truth in this phrase, it still exists within our society. Numerous studies prove that happiness and contentment are about discovering our true selves or as Maslow would say attaining self-actualization in the hierarchy of needs. The truth is however that satisfied people who work develop much pride and pleasure out of their occupations, they also build in time for relationships, outside interests and passions.

At the end of the day, it all boils down to your attitude to work. When we can take pleasure in our jobs, we wouldn’t even feel the need to maintain any kind of balance, as our lives would already be in harmony. We should learn from those people who are truly passionate about their professions.

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