A Step-by-Step Guide to Improving Your Work-Life Balance

Work-life balance is the balance between professional and personal life. Maintaining it is essential for our physical and mental health. What exactly does work-life balance mean, what does it look like in practice, and how can it be achieved? We provide some tips in the text.

Work-life balance – meaning

Work-life balance meaning is a state in which our professional and personal lives create a harmonious whole. This harmony allows us to feel like we are living in accordance with our expectations, values, and principles. The main idea behind work-life balance is to find a balance between work and career, and family, social life, and leisure time.

The concept of work-life balance emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United Kingdom, when the development of corporations and organizations caused employees to become overworked. Society began to demand a separation between their professional and personal lives.

Today, work-life balance is just as, if not more, important than it was a few decades ago. With technological advances and changes in work patterns, our personal and professional lives are mixing, and we must learn to draw boundaries between these areas.

Why work-life balance is important?

The concept of work-life balance is not about always working from 9 to 5 or only working from the office. The balance between our personal and professional lives is essential for our mental health, as well as for maintaining positive relationships with our environment and families. This state is individual: each of us has different needs and different aspirations. Understanding employees’ needs for rest, respecting boundaries between days off and working time, and flexibility in dealing with employees are all keys to employee satisfaction.

How can an employer take care of work-life balance?

• By allowing remote work – this way, employees can spend more time with their loved ones or take care of daily household chores.
• By allowing flexible working hours – we are not always productive at a set time, so the ability to work according to our individual rhythm is highly valued.
• By organizing integration events with family and friends – nothing positively affects work-life balance like integration with loved ones and colleagues. This way, we gain a sense that the employer cares about our needs.

Work-life balance – benefits

Work-life balance is associated with specific benefits not only for employees but also for employers. Here are some of them:

• Increased productivity – a rested and relaxed employee is an effective employee. When we are well-rested, we have better concentration, complete tasks more quickly, and come up with better ideas.
• Greater job satisfaction – if we feel that work does not disrupt our natural rhythm of life, we derive greater satisfaction from it. Balance allows us to avoid frustration and burnout.
• Better well-being and health – people who can maintain a balance between their professional and personal lives are less stressed, and as a result, healthier. They also have more time for activities such as exercise.
• Opportunities for personal growth and pursuing passions – work-life balance benefits are also related to development in other areas and fields that interest us. Acquiring new skills increases our sense of satisfaction and also provides value to the employer.
• Improved employer reputation and employee loyalty – nothing affects an employer’s positive reputation more than taking care of their employees’ work-life balance. They are usually better rated by their employees and more willing to recommend them. This makes it easier to attract and retain the best professionals in their field.