Work and personal life are difficult to balance especially for those with kids at home. Personally, over the last few years I’ve discovered an ongoing challenge in ability to counterbalance both areas efficiently. Fortunately, no kids at home (yet) so the work and life counterbalance does not seem impossible to manage. As my career grows and I take on more initiatives I’ve strived for discovering ways to assist with the workload where I’m able to dedicate enough time to work and family. For the record, family comes first preceded by everything else. Perfection seems nearly impossible and something I’m quite aware of but a reasonable counterbalance is definitely achievable.
A few tips I wanted to share with my audience when it comes to balancing work and personal life.
Forecast/Plan Ahead of Time
One of the biggest advantages to counterbalancing work and personal life consists of ability to stay ahead of everything. Trust me, it’s easier said than done being a prime example of the approach myself. Consider setting some time aside on daily basis, perhaps 10-15 minutes at most to project the span of next few days or even upwards to a week. Kids activity, networking events, and of course never forget leisure time.
Stay Organized
Personally I’ve come to find out that technology can be your friend if utilized properly. Between client meetings and deadlines it can become difficult to efficiently multi-task several things. Therefore, consider using a calendar to assist with reminders of upcoming events or tasks. For example, I almost religiously utilize my iCal on my desktop to integrate any current and upcoming meetings. It integrates quite seamlessly with my iPhone to help me stay in the know. I’ve come to find out that Google Apps can be an extremely useful and efficient cloud-based solution for business solutions management. Anything from e-mail to online storage, sharing, you name it, it’s right there in tact. Set as many reminders on upcoming events as you’re comfortable with based on however many frequencies you desire. I tend to set multiple reminders ahead of time for certain events so I have a safety net and never miss an appointment.
Reboot/Recharge/Refresh
Counterbalancing work and personal life can become hectic and exhausting real quick. Throwing kids in the mix will derail everything else even more. I’ve come to find out that if you factor in leisure time, exercise, or engage in some enjoyable, it will most definitely assist with maintaining equality across everything that you do. For example, i’m a fitness enthusiast and I find enjoyment in a quick run or bike ride when the weather permits. It helps with taking my mind off of things temporarily with ability to freshen up my thoughts and overall approach to work related tasks. Additionally, as of recently I’ve become a huge fan of the Netflix original series “House Of Cards” that tends to keep me on my toes.
How do you offset work and personal life?