Five tips for improving your work/life balance

Category: Coaching Notes

Here are some tips from Carol Newland for making a real difference to your work/life balance. These are simple actions which you can do now. Not all of them will suit you. But choose at least one to try out this week. Experiment and find out what works for you.

1. Take a lunch break. Even if it is only 15 minutes. Get out if possible and sit in the park, walk around the block or go window shopping. You know it will refresh you and make you more effective when you return.




2. Stop for a full minute several times a day. Take your attention to your breathing and watch the in and out flow of your breath. Allow the out breath to get a little longer each time. And as you breathe out allow your shoulders and jaw to relax.




3. Resist the temptation to keep interrupting what you are doing to deal with incoming e-mails. Schedule particular times during the day to look at your e-mails. Turn off the sound on your PC which alerts you every time an e-mail arrives.




4. Cut down on caffeine in coffee and tea. Buy a bottle of water and drink that during the day. Find decaffeinated or herbal drinks which you like. For those of you who do not like herbal teas there are hundreds of different types and flavours out there - find something you do like. This will cut down your stress levels and give you more energy.




5. Set yourself an earlier time to stop work at least twice a week and stick to it. Ask yourself why you are staying there. Who will value that half hour more - your clients/employer or your family/yourself? Don't kid yourself that you really need to be at your work for that extra half hour. If you are the boss set your team a good example (and do them a favour) and go home. Don't start that 30 minute job 10 minutes before your scheduled stop time.

Carol is an associate of Brefi Group and a partner in WorkLife Architect. The next WorkLife Architect programme starts in Southampton on 25 May.