How to maintain a work-life balance?

February 26, 2022 No Comments

HR Manager

The topic has gained popularity with the recent growth of technology that has made employees online and available. The ‘weekend work emails’ is not a hoax, to say the least.

The work hours have become prolonged, due to messaging applications that are now used for official communications. EOD isn’t a set defined time, it more often than not spills into beyond work hours.

Image Source – Thepalmergroup

Employee efficiency is being stretched with technological, incentive-based tools. With all these and many other factors, there has been noticeable fatigue in employees across different areas of work. This fatigue results in a poor retention rate for organizations and affects the morale of the employee in the long term.

When an employee feels fatigued, they often blame the organization and try to look for other opportunities, which ends up being an added cost in money and time for the company, and the employee is also at discomfort because of a new team/ work environment/ responsibilities. It is, therefore necessary for both parties i.e. employer and employee to implement and maintain a healthy work-life balance. Following are a few steps that can be taken:

Work communication channels to be implemented strictly:

With applications like WhatsApp being used for work conversations, the boundaries of time can get blurred. While this is an administration level shift and better implemented at the organizational level you can send out a polite email and ask your team to interact on emails only. Give an explanation and state how it affects your work performance in the long run. There is a high possibility of your team understanding and promoting this way of working.

Separate your work-space:

With the global pandemic, India has also adapted to a hybrid work module. Offices across India have gone on and off the work from the home module. With work from home the working space we have made our bedrooms/dining tables/ living room sofa our work station. While the comfort of it all is convenient, it can majorly impact your personal life. When you have been in bed working all-day your brain might not accept it as a resting place immediately. This can lead to trouble in sleeping, etc. Which in the long run affects your efficiency to work.

Have set work hours and stick to it:

Have a routine, set your working hours as per your organization, and maintain sticking to it. People in your team will value your time if they see you not delaying work from your end and will accommodate accordingly. You always have the upper hand if you send out your daily task-related emails/ other follow-up emails right in the morning as soon as work starts. This is a practiced skill and managing time is easier said than done. Be patient and don’t give up on it, you will eventually put it into practice.

Make friends outside work:

This is an extremely personal choice, but we more often than not find ourselves spending time with our colleagues post-work hours. While this is great for relationship building internally and can help you with short-term things, in the term you will realize that your conversations end up being about work/ people at work/ other work topics. Which can create a dull short visioned social life and can be restrictive in developing a fresh perspective on things. Shrofile recommends having a social life beyond colleagues.

Indulge in out-of-work hobbies:

Having hobbies like reading books on the subject of your work can lead to a feeling of no off days from work. While your selection of books is a personal choice, we recommend expanding the hobbies to something that is not-work related. You can choose to learn to do pottery if you work at a law firm instead of spending the weekend reading a book about law.

These are just a few things you can practice to initiate the steps towards a healthier work-life balance. If there’s anything you want to add, feel free to drop your suggestions in the comments section. And for any more questions or information click on the contact us tab and reach out.