Here are my cues to help you improve your work-life balance:
Why is a work-life balance important?
There are some very interesting philosophies and theories about how to balance work and your personal life. The phrase originated in the late ‘80s when occupational health experts studied the impact work-related stress has on one’s personal life. Today, it is no different because we are inundated with stressors, not just at work, but also from world events–wars, politics, inflation, and crime. More than ever, there is a significant need for balance in our lives.
Why is balance so important? When you get stressed, knocked down from a setback, if you don’t have it, you can compromise your overall health. Work-life balance can lead to good physical (diet included), emotional, and mental health. You are taking an unnecessary risk when you don’t have balance. If you knew the bad stress from your hectic work schedule and poor personal life choices were going to cause you to have a heart attack, would you change your habits?
Surprisingly, some people are willing to take the risk. Recently, a person told me they would not change their habit of eating refined sugary snacks, drinking little to no water, and no exercise even though this is not good for them. To give you context, this individual works excessively and is always stressed. My question to them was, why take the risk of potentially doing more harm to your body?
ScienceAlert.com reports that more people have heart attacks on Monday compared to other days of the week. This made me ask some questions:
I don’t know.
Here is what I do know: All areas of your life are connected to one another. What you do at work and at home impacts your overall health. They are not two disconnected experiences that stay in different geographic locations, when you leave one and go to the other. The stress doesn’t stop just because you stop working your job, at a certain time especially if you work from home. It is also true if you have a dysfunctional family life–the effects follow you into the office or behind your desktop, if you work remotely. A girl I dated told me that she had to put Vodka, in her coffee, to get over the stress her husband caused her when they were married. She could not get through the workday without it.
Faking that everything is alright on social media platforms does not reduce the impact unbalanced living has on your health. Endless scrolling and soliciting or giving likes and shares won’t make you better, and it won’t provide you with life balance. I know you are rolling your eyes right now. People say to me all the time, it’s my entertainment. In my opinion, they are addicted to the short-term high. When they walk away from their device, it’s back to the same unbalanced life. Nothing changed.
What is a strategy to build a good work-life balance?
What I subscribe to is balancing your life by first defining your purpose. I believe balance looks different for each of us, because of our unique situations and goals. Sure, we all need to do the things to keep us healthy. A proper amount of rest, a nutritious diet, exercise, and recreation are among those things. But how that looks for you, personally, is not the same for someone else. Each of us has diverse and nuanced personal needs, responsibilities, careers, and families that require customization, based on our lifestyle.
Starting with defining and refining the purpose of your life gives you clarity on what you need to balance. When I explained to someone I just met what I do personally and professionally, they said, “You are a busy man.” My response was, “I am a purpose-driven man.” Everything I do is based on my unique purpose for my life. The person who made that statement was making a comparison to their life or their idea of balance. From another person’s perspective, my life balance may look more like chaos and stress.
For example, I lead a team of 14 volunteers made up of professionals, business owners, retirees, and diverse cultures for a non-profit that helps reduce recidivism and coaches prison inmates. This is in addition to my role as a marketing director of an international advertising agency, and coach and keynote speaker at NEXCUE. Not to mention, I am a father and husband who invests time and energy into my family. Furthermore, I am very active in helping people in low social economic communities and currently mentor five people. Despite all of this, every day I do some form of exercising. I run, practice yoga, strength train, take long walks, and more. On Saturdays, I put down my phone, watch no TV, and spend time with friends and family and the community. On Sundays, I podcast, blog, and share prayer devotionals to help professionals reduce their workplace stress. Every day, I read for my personal, spiritual, and professional growth. And, finally, my wife and I regularly host marriage support groups, lunch and dinner parties, and play games on the weekends.
I enjoy all of these activities because they are part of my life’s purpose. My life is in balance, based on my purpose. What I do with my life is clear.
No clear purpose = no balanced life.
How do you create habits to balance your life?
After you have defined your purpose, turn it into a routine to make it your lifestyle. This is where many people fail to move past their good intentions or philosophical fantasy. Purpose without a routine to support it makes it hard to realize.
None of what I do would be possible if I did not follow a purpose-routine. Having a purpose-routine is an effective way to create meaning, organization and harmony in your existing routine. A purpose-routine is more than just managing a schedule. When what you do is based on purpose, it drives your schedule. When you live your life with purpose, it will help you to remove things from your schedule that are not good.
Having a routine is not about being rigid or perfect. Life is fluid and dynamic. Your purpose-routine helps you to stay on course, but it also should spark your creativity to be spontaneous in dealing with the vicissitudes of life. Not having a purpose-routine increases the likelihood that you will fall victim to being disorganized and reactive to chaos. This produces an imbalanced lifestyle.
There are 168 hours in the week. How I use my time is based on a purpose-routine. I follow a schedule to create purposeful, predictable outcomes. The schedule may change but not my purpose. No, I can’t always control the outcomes just because I have a routine. What I am doing is creating predictability by building habits to overcome work-life disruptions.
When things do not go as I planned, I think as positively as I can and reference the goals in my purpose-routine. I must admit that sometimes I get rattled by life’s setbacks. But I don’t allow my emotions to corner me. My purpose-routine helps me to be resilient.
Why do you need a strong network of purpose-driven people?
None of the things I do are possible by myself. Nor am I doing them just for me. Only selfish people believe their life belongs to them. All of us are here for someone else. We are meant to deliver value in the lives of others. A big part of achieving your purpose is having purpose-driven people in your network. They understand their roles and responsibilities, and they help you balance your life.
Remember, creating a balanced life is possible. You must be intentional–it does not just happen. Define your purpose, create a routine that supports your purpose, and surround yourself with purpose-driven people who will encourage you and keep you accountable. A balanced life is a healthy life. Take your cues from me and live a great life! NEXCUE!
