Managing Work:Life Balance During a Pandemic
October 16, 2020Categorised in: Employee Wellbeing, News
The pressure of an increasingly demanding work culture mixed in with anxiety surrounding the current pandemic is a real challenge against the mental health of the UK working population.
It’s important to strike a positive work:life balance in order to keep levels of wellbeing high whilst remaining productive at work. One in six of us will experience a mental health problem at some point in our lives, so it’s important to eliminate the risk of this being work related.
As this week is National Work:Life Week, we have outlined some top tips for actions you can take to maintain your work:life balance, especially while remote working.
Take personal responsibility for maintaining your work:life balance.
When work expectations and demands become too much, make sure to address your concerns with your manager or employer – they need to be aware of where the pressures lie in order to address them and help you efficiently.
Prioritise your workload.
This means working smart and not long. By prioritising your task list, you will find that you stay focused on productive tasks and don’t end up side tracking, meaning you end up working longer hours to complete tasks.
Take proper breaks.
By making time for short, regular breaks, you will find yourself becoming more focused and productive, meaning again that the likelihood of you having to work overtime is very slim. Try and take some time in the fresh air too to break up environments.
Draw a line between work and leisure.
If you are working remotely, this point is even more important. Make a designated space for work, i.e at a desk rather than sitting on the bed. Try and avoid brining any work home to do in the evening if you can.
Be mindful about work-related stress and mental ill health.
Educate yourself on the signs and symptoms of work-related stress and anxiety, and reduce these feelings through exercise, relaxation and dedicated self-care time.
Make time to socialise.
Never forget the importance of being surrounded by a good support network of friends and family. If you find yourself sacrificing seeing them to be able to work longer hours, you will quite quickly begin to feel burnt out.
