Maintaining a work-life balance is something that pretty much everyone struggles with regardless of their job.
But, when you work from home and you are your own boss it’s hard to know where to draw the line.
It’s all too easy to work from the minute you wake up for 20 hours straight.
Saying “yes” to every job that sounds good and agreeing to 2 am phone calls (because, you know, clients in different time zones) will soon catch up with you!
Working this way isn’t sustainable.
You’ll find yourself burnt out before too long and unable to get anything done at all. It’s counter-productive.
It’s not just about getting work done and being productive either, it’s also about your health. You need to maintain a good work-life balance to stay sane.
So, let’s explore some easy steps you can take to have a better work life balance, and stay healthy and happy.
1. Set working hours
One of the best things about working for yourself is setting your own working hours. Being able to work completely flexible hours is one of the best things in the world! I absolutely love it and was a huge factor in why I left the 9-5 world.
But, it can be detrimental too.
Sometimes you’ll find yourself putting things off ’til later and before you know it, an entire day has passed by.
Other times, you’ll find yourself so totally absorbed by work that everything else in your life gets ignored.
Including friends, family and eating… oops!
The best way to maintain your work-life balance is to set yourself working hours.
Some people work best with a start and finish time – like 9-5. But this isn’t for everyone.
It definitely isn’t for me.
Instead, I set myself “work blocks” in my calendar.
So, if I want to work an 8-hour day, I’ll do a 2-hour block in the morning, 4 hours in the afternoon and then another 2 in the evening.
The timing of when those blocks happen doesn’t matter.
What does matter is that each block has a start and finish point and, during that block, I will just work and not do other things.
The key to maintaining your work-life balance is separating out work time and “life” time and making sure that you don’t ignore one of them.
2. Start the day off right
As tempting as it might be to roll out of bed and turn your laptop on, it can be bad for your creativity and productivity. I know we will all do this from time to time and it’s a great perk of being your own boss and working from home. But it shouldn’t be a regular occurrence. Instead, get yourself ready for work like you would do with any other job. It’s a great way to signal to your brain that it’s about to be ‘work time’. Create a morning routine that works for you. Go to the gym, make time for breakfast or just sit with a cup of coffee in front of the news for a while. Whatever feels right to you and gets you feeling awake and ready to focus. The key thing for me is having breakfast and getting dressed before I start working. Then, while downing the all-important coffee, I review my tasks for the day and goals for the week: “What can I get done today?” This puts me in the right mindset for work and helps separate work days from days off where I might lounge around in my PJs for a little while longer. How does this help maintain a work-life balance you ask? By clearly identifying and separating out your work time and your “life” time. If you let the two merge together, it’s so easy to get consumed by work time and forget about everything else!
3. Take regular breaks
No matter how you structure your working hours, remember to take regular breaks.
Being creative for 8+ hours each day is hard work! In fact, I’m not entirely sure it’s possible.
Studies have shown that we may only have as little as 2-5 hours of ‘deep work‘ in us each day.
So, it’s important for your concentration and mental health to take regular breaks.
Whenever you get up to make yourself a coffee, take 10-15 minutes away from your workspace. Aim for at least 10 minutes every 2 hours. If you struggle to remember set an alarm to prompt you.
Have a look out the window or read a couple of pages of a book. Whatever it is that you do, make sure it’s not work-related (so no emails!). Give your mind a break.
Taking regular breaks throughout the day might sound detrimental to maintaining a work-life balance.
After all, surely taking breaks is a waste of valuable work time so you’ll need to work longer hours, right? Wrong!
Taking regular breaks will keep you refreshed and on track.
This means that during your working time, you’ll be more productive and efficient, meaning fewer hours required to get the job done.
You see the thing is when we’re tired but push ourselves to keep working regardless, we work slowly.
And more often than not, the quality of that work isn’t up to our usual standard so we end up going back over it all again anyway.
It’s time-consuming and will inevitably lead to you working long hours, meaning less time for everything else!
Taking regular breaks means that you’ll get things done quicker and be able to finish your days “on time” more often. Result!
4. Stay active
Following on from the last tip, why not use some of your 15-minute breaks to stretch, do some yoga, or meditate? Don’t be afraid to step away from your work to keep active throughout the day. It’s all too easy to get up, work, go back to bed and forget about exercise, especially when you don’t need to leave the house every day. This was one of the biggest work-life balance downfalls for me. I used to love the commute walking to and from the office, but it’s so easy to forget about when you’re home all day. It wasn’t until recently that I realised the huge impact it was having on me by missing out on staying active. For me, exercise can be a huge stress reliever and without it, I can be anxious and stressed all of the time. It can be easy to think you have no time to exercise – you’re too busy focusing on work. So try not to view it as taking time ‘away’ from your work – but as adding to it. By being active you are improving your mind as well as your body, and your work will improve too as a result. Obvious health benefits aside, staying active is great for your brain and concentration. So, make time to fit in a workout during your day and don’t forget to get up from your desk, wander around a bit and stretch every now and then too.
5. Eat well
Eating rubbish can leave you feeling sluggish. So, it comes as no surprise that eating well can help your energy levels. As a vegan, I am super conscious of what I’m putting in my body and I have noticed that some foods can make me feel more sluggish than others. This can be totally personal to each person, so learn to listen to your body after eating. Do you feel better or worse for having eaten that particular food? Try to keep it towards the ‘better’ side during the day, or when you are trying to work and focus. But, this post is about maintaining your work-life balance, not nutrition. Make time for your meals. Make a point of having home-cooked meals (created from scratch) where possible. Even if you’re not the one who’s doing the cooking, take time out from your work to hang out in the kitchen with the chef! Dinner time is a great excuse to call it a day at work, or to take an extended break if you plan to work in the evening. Committing yourself to cooking an evening meal is a great reason to step away from your desk, catch up with your loved ones and refuel. It’s also great to spend time with family. It’s important not to shut yourself away in your home office. Just because you are physically in your house doesn’t mean that you’re necessarily spending quality time with your loved ones! If you live alone, like me, perhaps you can message them or get on a video call while you’re prepping? Get the work-life balance right by ensuring that you do take time out for them.
6. Switch off after work
Once you’ve finished work for the day, switch off. And I mean switch off everything. No checking emails over dinner or going on Facebook whilst watching a film with the family. One of the best ways to manage your work-life balance is to keep the two separate. Now, I know that sounds really obvious but I’m sure we’re all guilty of not actually doing this. I know that I’m particularly terrible when sitting down to watch something on Netflix, I’ll feel myself drawn to the laptop, itching to check my emails and notifications. Not only does this annoy anyone I’m with, but it means that I never truly switch off. Aargh! The ideal way to switch off is to delete all the social media apps off your phone, but I know this isn’t possible for a lot of people, myself included as a social media manager! I’m on the move a lot and having all of those apps at my fingers tips is necessary throughout the day. Instead, what I’ve started doing is putting my phone on the other side of the room, so I’m not tempted to pick it up every 5 minutes. Keeping it on loud means that I can hear calls and texts etc. in case someone needs to get hold of me, but turning off notifications on social media means that it’s not beeping every two seconds!
7. Make time for family and friends
Be a “Yes (Wo)Man!” Unless you have a strict deadline for a client, put your family and friends first. I hate to admit it, but there have been times when I’ve cancelled plans with people because I felt under so much pressure to be working on my business. And you know what, I never felt like I’d done enough work. On top of that, I was miserable. I missed my friends and family. What I actually found was that time with friends and family was refreshing. It made me happy, it allowed me to switch off from work completely and, when I did start working again, I could concentrate better because I wasn’t completely wiped out mentally. So, next time you’re about to say no to friends and family, think carefully about the impact it will actually have on your business. Will a couple of hours off really be the end of the world? If the answer to that question is “no”, then the answer to the invitation is “yes”.
8. Plan ahead
Planning ahead is one of the most useful ways I manage my work-life balance. It works in two different ways. Firstly, if I’ve planned ahead with work, I’ve got posts scheduled ahead of time and my social media updates are all ready to go, I can be more spontaneous and say “yes” to those last-minute offers of meeting up with friends. Secondly, if I make plans with friends in advance, I know what work I have to do before then. If I make sure anything urgent is done well ahead of time, it means I can completely switch off, relax and enjoy the time with my friends. Keeping track of key dates will help you stay on top of both your work and your life. So, grab a diary or a planner and get scribbling. It will also help you avoid any date clashes so you won’t have to say “no” to work or to life.
9. Ask for help when you need it
This is something that people, especially business owners and entrepreneurs struggle to get to grips with.
It’s hard to let someone else take responsibility for any element of your business, especially if you started it from scratch and built it up yourself.
But, even if after you’ve tried out all of the tips above, you’re spending all of your time working, this is something you could try to get some of your life back.
The fact is that, there are only 24 hours in a day.
And, if your blog or business continues to grow and thrive, there will come a point where it’s not physically possible for you to do everything anymore.
There will come a point where you are faced with a decision.
Either your business stops growing or you enlist some help.
Whilst asking for help is a big step, it could lead to more free time and a much better work-life balance.
Even if you’re not ready to employ a whole team of people, you might simply enlist someone to help you with the school run, which will give you an additional 2 hours a day.
Or bringing in a copywriter* to write web content or blog posts that you hate doing anyway.
*Hint! I’d love to help you – check out my copywriting page right here and get in touch today to get one step closer to that better work life balance you want (and need!).
10. Remember there’s more to life than work
If you’re like me, this is a tough one! It’s incredibly difficult not to let your own business become the centre of your universe, your reason for getting up in the morning, your raison d’être! But, unless you remember that there is more to life than work, all of the other tips written here are pointless! No matter how much you love your work or how badly you need the income, always remember there are other important things in your life. And make a conscious effort to make time for them.Ready to save even more time in your business? I can help you with your marketing
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