How To Balance Your Work Life & Social Life

Finding the right balance between your career and your personal life is growing more challenging year by year. As we get older, it seems there are less time and more obligations in our lives. In truth, it’s up to you to take steps to make sure your time is divided as equally as possible between those two parts of your life. These tips can help.

Create an Actionable Schedule

When asked about the work/life balance in their lives, many people say their careers take up the majority of their time. You can save time and spend less of it at work by creating a daily schedule that consists of one-hour time blocks. A specific task or set of tasks should be assigned to each block of time. The most challenging tasks should be positioned at the start of your workday, allowing you to complete them early when you’re at your most productive. The last time block that’s assigned to your workday should be reserved for answering emails and returning phone calls that aren’t time-sensitive. This should leave two-quarters of those time blocks empty for your personal life and your seven to eight hours of sleep.

Get Up One Hour Earlier

While it’s important to get seven to eight hours of sleep every night, you should be getting to bed early enough to allow you to wake up an hour early every morning. This may not seem like much extra time, but you’ll be surprised by how much you can accomplish with an extra hour in the morning. This provides the time for you to go for a run, eat a healthy breakfast that’s high in natural protein, and relax for a while before leaving for work. Maybe even read a blog like Instant Guest Post so you can read various opinions and learn a thing or two. You might even get a start on your day by answering messages that were leftover from the previous afternoon.

Make Time for Emotional Wellbeing

Relieving stress is essential to your mental health, so setting aside blocks of time for relaxation is also important. You can share this time with your friends if you have friends who also enjoy the same types of activities. This can involve practicing yoga and meditation, catching up on your favorite women empowerment blog, or listening to upbeat music. Any hobby that you find relaxing and diverting can be pursued at this time as well. You can use this time to engage in more physical activities if you choose. Exercise is a great way to reduce stress, and you can pick a different activity each day. Bicycling, weightlifting, swimming, and tennis are just a few things you can do to blow off some steam.

Leave Work at the Office

Even if you’re in a managerial position, you should create a strict rule about phone calls and texts after hours. Once you leave work for the day, your co-workers, supervisors, and subordinates should all understand that they cannot contact you except in cases of real emergencies. This is an important rule because it will save you from having your work life intrude on the time you spend with your family or with friends. Once you refocus your thoughts on work, you’ll be back in that frame of mind and you won’t be able to fully relax and enjoy your social time.

Make Specific Plans

If you find that creating time blocks isn’t enough to create a firm division between work and your personal life, you can also make plans with friends and family members. You’re less likely to work late and reduce your personal time if you have firm plans to go to a concert, attend a child’s play, or go to a sporting event. When you spend money on an event, such as buying tickets or making reservations, you’ll be even more determined to attend the event. Some professionals find it also helps to schedule social time as an appointment in their datebook. This sends them an alarm that lets them know they have plans elsewhere.
There are many more ways you can create a better balance in your life. You should feel encouraged to try new ideas that will help you get a little more freedom in your daily routine. Once you begin experiencing the benefits of a better work/life balance, you’ll feel motivated to keep that division between your career and your home life.