Achieving work life balance can often be a real challenge, especially for people with families. How to reconcile career and home responsibilities and still have time for yourself?
Chaos is not conducive to combining professional and private life. Every day we should meticulously plan what we have to do, preferably writing down the most important points on a list (ticking off subsequent tasks will give us satisfaction and a sense of moving forward). With specific goals to achieve, it will be easier for us to focus on … work, without wasting time surfing the web, which causes us to get out of rhythm, often falling behind and having to take overtime. Without a schedule, we often don’t realize how time is slipping through our fingers on worthless, often automatic habits like browsing Instagram, Facebook, or our favorite gossip sites.
If we feel that we don’t spend enough time with our partner or we have completely neglected ourselves, and our favorite hobbies have long been forgotten, it’s worth organizing additional child care – maybe our parents, siblings or a friend will be happy to take care of our child once a week or once every two weeks for a few hours. In this way you will have some time just for yourself. It is also a great idea to hire a babysitter if your budget allows it.
Establish an equal division of responsibilities with your partner and involve him/her in household chores. Taking everything on your shoulders is very burdensome, overwhelming and increases the risk of depression. It’s also a good idea to introduce this principle at work – even if we think we can do something better than others, let less experienced team members prove themselves, maybe they will be pleasantly surprised and appreciate being trusted more?
It is worth accepting the fact that life is not perfect and despite our best intentions and efforts, something can always go wrong. Living in a constant sense of guilt that we could have done something faster, better, differently is not good for our psyche – so it’s worth adopting an accepting attitude. Only in this way will we be able to enjoy the present moment, live without constant tension. It’s really not worth worrying about trivialities!
Thanks to the achievements of new technologies and the possibility of remote work, time flexibility and performing duties not only in the office space, but also at home (being constantly online, that is, reachable for the boss in case of the so-called fire) has become the norm. It is worth taking care of the hygiene of working time, set clear rules and work only during designated hours, do not check business emails or answer calls from clients or co-workers at any time of day or night. The healthiest approach is to leave your business matters at the office and stop thinking about them once you cross the threshold of your home – only thanks to this attitude you will be able to focus 100% on your family.
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Knowledge of the principles of assertive communication is invaluable both at work and at home. It’s worth learning how to refuse (in a cultured way, of course), how not to be persuaded to do things which are not in line with your values (e.g. finishing a project at home again), and how to argue your position concretely. It would be a good idea to attend an assertiveness training workshop, especially if we are very submissive by nature and avoid conflicts at all costs.
To sum up, combining several roles in life – parent, employee and partner is not easy, it is often connected with guilt, frustration and stress. We hope that our practical tips will make it a little easier for you to achieve balance in your life.
