Work Life

Balance
What exactly is
“Just as your car runs more smoothly and requires
less energy to go faster and farther when the wheels
are in perfect alignment, you perform better when
your thoughts, feelings, emotions, goals, and values are
in balance.” ~ Brian Tracy
What do we mean by Work Life balance ?

•Equal balance between work and personal activities? No

Life is and should be more fluid than that
•Is it same for everyone ? No
Varies from individual to individual, and varies over time…
on a daily basis as well over different phases of life…
There is no perfect, one-size fits all solution…

The best work-life balance is different for each of us because we all

have different priorities and different lives
It is nothing….but giving yourself
PERMISSION to have more integration
between your professional and personal
life
Defining Work- life balance ?

Revolves around two key everyday concepts relevant to each of us

•Daily Achievement
•Enjoyment

These two concepts are like the front and back of the coin of value in life.
Do you know any "Successful" people who’re not as happy as they should be ?
Defining Work- life balance….
Meaningful daily achievement and enjoyment in each of the four life
quadrants:

FRIENDS SELF

FAMILY WORK
 The Mathematician's View

A balanced life is one where we spread our energy and effort - emotional,
intellectual, imaginative, spiritual and physical – between key areas of
importance.
The Analyst View

A wheel has spokes to ensure its strength and balance. Unequal spokes
can make the ride very bumpy, or completely break down
How do you define your own work life
balance?
• What are your Values?
– What’s important to you?
– What makes you happy ?
– What did you write down earlier?
• What are the Barriers?
– time, stress, dual career family, lack of support from family,
supervisor, peers
 Work Life Triangle
Work
(what we do, careers, housework, chores, etc)

Relationship Self-Care
(personal, friendships, (spiritual, physical, intellectual,
partners, spouse, children) emotional, health, wellness, exercise)
Work Life Triangle - Work
Work is not where you go

but what you do

So how do we go about achieving the Work-Life
Balance ?

Each person has his/ her own formula defining the composition of career,
family, friends and self into their integrated whole.

Dream
When people's lives are out of balance they are unable to identify the obvious
options for themselves and their families

Be Selfish Yourself First

You are no good to anyone if you yourself are indisposed (unwell)

Focus on whatever u are doing.

Maximize your productivity at work and don’t let unfinished business carry over
into your personal time.
Always put in your best effort.. Even if its not your core competence
Be Organized.
Disorganisation is the theft of time.
Try to manage your day, instead of having the day manage you.

Make lists.
Use technologies like PDA to offload the stress of remembering

Prioritize.
Lists invariably become lengthy. Identify those which contribute towards a
balance between work and life

Be flexible.
Change is imminent. Those who accept this and work around change are the
most productive, best-adjusted individuals

Plan, but do not run your life on a time table. Its important to prioritise, but
be mindful that nothing is static
Don't be a slave to your e-mail or to phone calls
With Technological advances … peoples expectation of response has risen
proportionately.
The need to be needed is addictive
One needs 'downtime' to refresh mentally, emotionally or physically.

Know your weakness and strengths

Improve your skills as necessary to enhance your productivity and reduce your
stress.

Be forgiving, especially of yourself.

You are human. You will make mistakes and fall short of the ideal, including
your own.
Don't wallow in guilt. Learn from your mistakes.

Set boundaries and learn to say no.

Being a good employee, spouse, parent, and friend doesn't mean blindly giving
into everyone else's demands and spending all your time and energy doing for
others as they dictate.
Work Life Triangle -
Relationships
Personal relationships
are the fertile soil
from which all
advancement...all
success... all
achievement in real
life grows
Don’t let that day come for your loved ones without telling them what
they mean to you
Hang out with your family or treasured friends. Talk to them. Listen to them.
Understand them. Spending a little time with someone shows that you care,
shows that they are important enough that you’ve chosen — out of all the
things to do on your busy schedule — to find the time for them.

Value the relationships

Truly connect with lovable ones through good conversation. Many times its our
actions, not just our words, that really speak what our hearts feel.

Taking the time to connect with those you love will bring you true
happiness.
The more you do it, the happier you’ll be.
Team
• Chose the right team members,
better than yourself … invest time in
the process
• Know your team members,
colleagues & supervisors … their
strengths and weakness.
• Monitor initial engagements .. Just
like a life guard monitors new
swimmers
• Trust them and delegate … make
yourself dispensable, so that u can
play a larger role in strategic
initiatives and career development
of team members
Work Life Triangle – Self Care
Take time for yourself. This may sound difficult for people who believe they
are in very responsible position … who think they are indispensable.
Find opportunities within the busy work schedule

Take more Frequent though short breaks

Establish good, supportive relationships, both at work and home.

Its important to foster real teamwork and create an environment in which

employees respect and are willing to assist each other.
Children frequently enjoy being a useful member of the family - especially if
they understand the importance of it.
Open House