Over the last few years businesses have worked tirelessly to stay afloat, and so it is no surprise that so many of us are now struggling to separate our work and home life. We often find it difficult to ‘switch off ‘and relax once getting home – and while our businesses may be growing, it comes at the cost of our personal well-being. While a work-life balance doesn’t literally have to be spilt 50/50, for both areas to thrive – harmony must exist between the two.
Your time away from work is integral to maintaining a productive routine and avoiding burnout. Whilst striking a balance can sometimes seem like an impossible task, it becomes much more accessible once improving your time management. Here are our top tips for achieving a better work life balance:
Establish your priorities
Often the most challenging task is determining what needs to be done first. Understanding your agenda and establishing a priority system for your tasks is crucial for maintaining harmony. A physical list of all your tasks can go a long way- helping to visualise and establish an appropriate approach. Divide your duties into categories such as ‘urgent’ and ‘less urgent’, and don’t be afraid to include non work-related tasks. It is important to be able to look at the bigger picture and prioritise, cut down or rule things out completely. Remember that no task is more important than your wellbeing. Pencil in some time for yourself!
Schedule and plan
Prioritising your tasks often goes hand in hand with planning and scheduling. It allows you to designate a time frame, thus making it easier to see how much time you’re spending and where. There are many business tools that can help you along the way. From online schedulers, digital diaries to time logs – there are plenty of resources that help improve your time efficiency and awareness. Look at your calendar and make sure you have enough leeway between each duty. Back-to-back tasks without a minute to spare are not practical and often end up creeping into overtime. Spread out your assignments and balance out the heavier workloads with some easier tasks in-between. This will help you complete your work duties to a higher standard while leaving enough time for you to wind down.
Know when to outsource/delegate
It may seem like powering through workloads and completing everything yourself is the way to go. However, there is always someone else out there who could do that task quicker and more efficiently – allowing you to get on with more pressing matters. Delegating and outsourcing is not only more time efficient but also ensures that everything is finished before the deadline, without increasing your working hours in the process. It is the perfect solution for every business owner struggling to find enough hours in the day and the most effective way of achieving that work-life balance.
Knowing your strengths and setting expectations
Before you begin working toward a goal, decide whether it’s something you can achieve now or whether there are additional preliminary steps you should take to become better prepared. Using micro-productivity may help – it works by dividing large parts of the task into smaller, easier pieces. Setting milestones as you complete parts of the task will give you the chance to evaluate and readjust if needed. Setting an end date/ deadline helps by giving you an extra push towards a goal. If you don’t complete the task by deadline, the timeframe might have been unrealistic – be wary of unexpected roadblocks. Making your tasks more manageable allows for more consistent work times and thus a more balanced routine.
If you’d like to find out more about time management or other tips for achieving a better work-life balance, we would love to help! We offer various back-office services, tailored to suit a range of business needs. Get in touch:
E: makeithappen@mbsmih.com T: 01903 688789