- Draw a line between your work and your life
Sometimes, this means staying at the office an hour later because you have a rule that you don’t bring work home with you. Other times, it means limiting how many times you allow yourself to check your email on the weekends, or even taking your work email off your phone completely.
You need to know the difference between work and life, and then clearly separate them before you are able to truly find a balance.
- See the sun every day
Sunlight is a natural antidepressant. Be sure to step outside for at least ten minutes every day – a ray of sunlight will elevate your mood.
- Find your stress reliever
If you let yourself get stressed out over work, it will slowly take over your life. You have to find a way to let out all the pent-up stress before it does. Find what relaxes you, and do it regularly. It can be anything – running, meditation or art hobbies are just a few examples of relaxing activities.
- Do one important thing a day
Unfortunately, most people don’t love their jobs and are not lucky enough to spend many hours a day working with their passions. This means you have to make an extra effort to pursue what truly matters to you.
Make sure that at the end of every day, you can look back and think of one important thing you did — whether that’s volunteering for an hour, seeing your family, or getting one step closer to your life goals. If you can, figure out how you can use your time at work to achieve one thing that’s genuinely important to you each day. And if that feels impossible? It might be time to consider finding a new job.
- Frame The Big Picture— and put it on your desk
Always remind yourself of the things you want to do, see, and experience outside of work. You need to have something that your life is working towards — small goals or big goals that you want to accomplish during the other 14 hours of your day.
It may be a map of the world to remind you of all the places you want to travel, a picture of your family to remind you who you’re working for, or a quote that inspires you. Get motivated and inspired!
- Consider people before your job whenever you can
Your job won’t hug you when you’re sad, listen when you’re angry, smile when you’re happy or love you when you’re lonely. Your job does nothing your friends can do — so try to choose friends over work, whenever you can.
- Take as many vacations as you can
If you are given ten days’ vacation, take ten days’ vacation. Vacation days are essential to your sanity and in most cases if you don’t use them, you lose them.
- Remember: you don’t live to work
The most important thing to remember when establishing a work-life balance is that you don’t live to work — you work to live. You work so you can afford life; so you can afford those drinks with friends, and travel on those vacation days. Your job lets you live in the big city, join the gym, buy groceries, and own things. Your job is not the only reason for your life, and you will lose yourself if you treat it like it is.
Here’s to a better work-life balance in 2015. (Source: buzzfeed.com)
