Life balance
Finding balance in today's world of work and personal life is not a simple task. We are not living in a traditional life where women would stay home and care for their families. More than ever, Canadian women play many different roles in all aspects of their lives.
They are workers, parents, spouses, friends, caregivers, or volunteers in their communities. Not to mention they have to take care of their own physical and mental well-being.
The demand and pressure at home and at work make it very challenging for women to find and maintain a life balance. Consequently, most women juggle between the two responsibilities without taking time off.
How to create life balance?
Life balance does not mean an equal number of hours spent for each of our various roles. There is no perfect one answer; life balance is different for each of us because we have different priorities and different lives.
Here are some suggestions to help you create harmony, reduce stress and create work-life balance
At Home:
Keep a log;
pay attention to day to day activities that are not necessary or could easily be delegated.
Make a priority list;
don't overwhelm yourself with everything on your list. Start with the most important item and make you way through the list.
Manage your time;
organize household tasks efficiently. A weekly family calendar with important dates and daily list will help you avoid deadline and additional stress.
Reserve one night a week for fun and recreation;
choose a fun activity that the whole family will enjoy.
Leave work at work;
turn off your cell phone and put away your laptop computer
Nurture yourself;
take care of your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual need before reaching for your life balance.
Get enough sleep;
sleep-deprivation is stressful and potentially dangerous.
Seek professional Help;
if your life is a chaos and you feel extremely overwhelmed, talk with a professional.
At work:
Learn to say no;
it is okay to say no! Doing things out of guilt or obligations, create more stress and false expectation at work.
Take your days off;
take advantage of your days off, make time to enjoy yourself.
Create a support system;
talk to your co-workers during stressful times, let them assist you when need their support.
Have boundaries;
if you hope to move up the career ladder, you may find yourself working more than 40 hours a week to achieve and exceed employer expectations. Be clear and have healthy boundaries.