What is a work life balance? 

I’m not sure there’s a definition as everyone’s perspective of ‘balance’ is varied. 

To me, creating a work life balance means that both aspects run smoothly and don’t interfere with each other too much. But as I’ve been researching and getting other people’s perspective of what a work life balance is for them, I’ve realised that we have to look at them as intertwined with one another.

We can’t really put both ‘work’ and ‘life’ in neat little boxes and expect everything to run smoothly. There are twists and turns that can cause an impact on each other. 

A stressful day at work can interfere with your wind down time at home. You may have been planning to meet a friend after your shift and don’t feel up to it because of the day you’ve had. 

It all links together and makes up our life. Working is part of our lives too so why do we put them up against each other?

Work Life Balance = Work vs. Life?

Creating a work life balance can be seen as putting everything else in life up against your job or career. This can actually create a negative perspective on your working life and make you believe that it’s work vs life. 

This implies you have to balance your job among everything else in life and this can cause resentment in your employment. 

When in fact, you may love your job. You might be lucky enough to work with some of your best friends 

You may currently be in a position where you need to dedicate a lot of time to your role, like you’re starting a business or working towards a promotion. You won’t always need this level of commitment as you’re currently working to progress and move forwards. When things level out and stabilise, you may have more time for other things. 

‘Life’ is made up of so many things

Your hobbies, your family, children, social life, relaxation time, making food, exercising…

When we break it down like this, it almost sounds impossible to balance all of these things alone. 

We spend about 8 hours a day sleeping, which is already a third of our day gone. We will spend roughly another 8 hours a day at work. Maybe an hour or two getting ready and travelling to and from work. 

We have to make time to eat and prepare our food, pick the kids up from school, housework, cooking, cleaning, paying the bills… 

After tackling all of these tasks, it doesn’t leave a lot of time in your day to do the things that you need for your brain to relax and calm itself down. No wonder so many people then struggle sleeping with all the crazy thoughts of the day taking over. 

Life isn’t just about surviving and doing all of these ‘essentials’. We need more stimulation in order for us to live fulfilled lives and keep our minds healthy. 

This could be relaxation time, spending time with friends, your hobbies and all the things that you enjoy doing that keep you mentally sound and happy in your head. 

How on earth do we balance it all?

It’s tricky because within the typical work pattern, it doesn’t leave a lot of time for us to take on all the things in ‘life’. In the modern day, as women, we’re expected to do and have it all. 

This unnecessary pressure leads us to question if we’ve got everything in order. 

However, I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t really matter. If you’re happy, continue as you are! 

The universe is only going to throw more curveballs your way and will shake the perfectly planned schedule that you keep clutched to your chest. 

But I will give you some tips on how to make things feel a little less chaotic. 

My big tips:

Consider what tasks are temporary. If there’s something going on in your life that’s only going to last a short amount of time, whether it’s a high priority or not, pop it in the schedule and find the time to do it. It could be an opportunity you may never get again or something you want to remember forever. 

Long term and recurring tasks usually aren’t urgent and you can predict when they are due or are going to happen. These can be so easy to fit in as you’re expecting them and know way ahead of time when they’re coming. 

Put urgent tasks first and schedule time for these daily or every other day. 

Don’t cancel on ‘life’ for work, unless absolutely urgent. A lot of your time is already dedicated to working so don’t cancel any plans unless it’s necessary. 

Don’t punish yourself for working more. As I said earlier, it all depends on the situation you’re in. If you’re working towards a bigger and brighter future and as long as you’re not neglecting everything else in life, don’t punish yourself. 

Consider how often certain tasks need doing. Is it daily, weekly, monthly? Adapt your schedule and stagger your weekly and monthly tasks over different days so you aren’t bombarded with a long list on your day off. 

How often things need doing, daily, weekly, monthly?

Schedule time for yourself too. Just as you would write down all the things you need to do at work, make a note of the things you want to achieve in your normal life too. 

Be flexible. Maybe your work doesn’t allow a lot of flexibility, but parts of your life can be. It’s important to know you can be flexible as you never know what can come up and ruin your plans. If you can’t be flexible, when these 

Remember your idea of ‘balanced’ is different to others. Everyone has different needs and parts of their lives that require more time and energy. Your ratio of work to life will be different to others. Your friend who has children probably doesn’t have as much time to relax and socialise as you do. Remember that when you try to make plans with each other. 

You’re still allowed to love your job. You’re also allowed to think of your job as just a money source. Don’t let the idea of creating a work life balance interfere with how you feel about your employment. A work life balance is about making sure things run smoothly and don’t take over each other. 

Pay attention to the small things. Your balance becomes unbalanced when you start neglecting one side of the scales. When it starts to tip a little too far, it’s time to start levelling it all out by putting more weight on the other side. The small things that keep you going can help to level your balance. 

Don’t focus too much on measuring the numbers. Life can’t always be perfectly measured and balanced. As long as you’re enjoying your work, also having the time and energy for pleasure and leisure and living a full life, who’s to complain?

And that’s really all I wanted to share with you. Create your own balance and don’t compare it to others. The end goal is to be happy and pouring your energy into all the right buckets.