How do you maintain a healthy work life balance?
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At our recent user conference, one of our partners gave a presentation on the importance of maintaining a healthy work life balance. He made some very good and valid points, so I figured I'd reach out to see what others do in order to "leave work at the office."
It can be difficult to "unplug" when you head home for the day, so what do you do to make it happen?
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When you work from home it is SUPER hard to unplug. Having a family that is willing to step in and take the phone/tablet/laptop away for a bit helps
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I tend to do most of my work and play at a computer. A lot of times the two blends in because I enjoy tinkering in my home lab as much as I do playing games... and my Work job is also configuring software and such for servers... So it is just a matter of which servers I am remoted into for me.
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I think that this is one of those questions that comes up a lot but a key aspect is often lost because the assumption is that work is bad, life is good and you need to limit one while growing the other. Often this is true, hence the assumption.
But for people who love their work there is another option - integrating work and life together. Going the opposite of the assumed "good" direction. It is normally believed that to be happy we need enough "life" where there is no work in order to "recover" from work. Why?
If we enjoy our work why would we need a break from it? Instead of working to make work and life more separate, why not put them more together? I think that the best option is find work that you love and work from which you don't need to escape. Then find ways to not just let work seep into life but life into work. In the same way that when work sucks you want to keep work out of your life, keeping life out of your work increases stress and makes your work time that much worse.
But if both are great, why not merge them together? Why make your "life" stop for 40+ hours a week. Instead of "working so much" you can possibly make it like you are "never working at all" because life never stops.
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@Minion-Queen said:
When you work from home it is SUPER hard to unplug. Having a family that is willing to step in and take the phone/tablet/laptop away for a bit helps
Sometimes, when I get home, It is when I actually enjoy my gadgets...but yes, need to learn to unplug a lot more often...
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@garak0410 Unplug? What is this? If I unplug for too long, I go deaf again. Good thing I just changed my batteries!
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I find that unplugging causes stress. I need to unplug less. It's important to make work not stressful or negative, once you do that, unplugging from things that you enjoy to "get a break" doesn't make any more sense, then, than going to work to escape "life".
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I tend to avoid tricks and try and make sure that I'm doing well whether I'm at work or home. Like others here I tend to see them as one continuum rather than discrete areas to keep separate.
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Something I try to be really careful of is making sure my family gets the best of my time and energy. If I am always working then they aren't getting that. Unplugging is important so that all my attention is focused on them.
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@scottalanmiller said:
I find that unplugging causes stress. I need to unplug less. It's important to make work not stressful or negative, once you do that, unplugging from things that you enjoy to "get a break" doesn't make any more sense, then, than going to work to escape "life".
But there are so many other things that can be enjoyed that don't require sitting in front of a screen 24/7. Working that way isn't necessarily negative, all I'm saying is that there is far more to life than being plugged to a screen constantly. It's waaaaaaay more fun to do stuff outside, specifically things that require you to disconnect for a bit. I promise you can go out and look up at the stars on a clear night without any electronic devices. It has worked that way for tens of thousands of years.
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When I leave for the day, I don't unplug, I just don't respond, unless it's something important.
I'm dis-associated but connected, so I'm able to keep an eye out for trouble.
And as the saying goes "There is no such thing as a critical email or text, call if it's critical, anything less can be left for tomorrow"
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@Nic said:
I tend to avoid tricks and try and make sure that I'm doing well whether I'm at work or home. Like others here I tend to see them as one continuum rather than discrete areas to keep separate.
At 40-50 hours a week, work is second only to sleep for most people in "things that they do." If you add in "time preparing for work" it shoots far higher (getting dressed, mentally preparing, disruptions to other life events, commuting, etc.) When I was at one job my "on site" time was 50-60 hours and my commute time was another 15. So 75 hours a week away from my family. That's almost exactly 1/3rd of my entire life and more than sleep!
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@DustinB3403 said:
And as the saying goes "There is no such thing as a critical email or text, call if it's critical, anything less can be left for tomorrow"
Not a very good saying, IMHO. Quite the opposite. Nothing important can be relayed over the phone. No such thing as a critical phone call. In fact, I don't answer any calls unless someone has sent details in email first.
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@scottalanmiller You and I have widely different lives, you may need that email communication first, I don't, and generally don't want them.
I get CC'd on so many email chains that are 10 pages long (in the middle of the conversation) that I'm almost never caught up.
So everyone knows if you're calling me, it better be important. (or to ask if I want to go out for a beer
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@DustinB3403 said:
So everyone knows if you're calling me, it better be important. (or to ask if I want to go out for a beer
)I don't want noise or interruptions unless they are warranted. Can't have "Scott's life stops while he answers the phone before knowing if it matters" going on 24x7. That's untenable. I once got called 34 times on Christmas Eve for something that one email would have fixed instantly.
Also, emails are far more reliable. What happens if you aren't at home? Or your cell phone is broken? I can get emails anywhere. Phones you have to know what number I am at and that it is working.
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@DustinB3403 said:
I get CC'd on so many email chains that are 10 pages long (in the middle of the conversation) that I'm almost never caught up.
I feel like you are using phone calls as a replacement to good email management
Work with filters. -
@scottalanmiller New work responsibilities, so I don't want to start burying them into folders yet. ...
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@DustinB3403 said:
@scottalanmiller New work responsibilities, so I don't want to start burying them into folders yet. ...
Better than not being caught up and no longer getting emails that you need. If you have to resort to phone calls to make up for email management it's already past that point.
And just being in a folder doesn't make it buried. Your inbox is a folder and if it is no longer able to alert you, it is buried there too.
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@DustinB3403 If you have been there longer than a month, let the burying begin.
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I have a completely flexible schedule. I work when I want and where I want. Generally, I start in the morning about 9. I work on and off during the day and then break for. Few hours in the evening to be with family. Then a work on and off a bit more in the late evening.
I generally hit just under 8 hours a day on weekdays and then 3-4 hours a day on weekends normally coming in at 45ish work (billable) hours a week.
I of course have constraints such as client meetings, but these are not large impacts to my life.
I have found this schedule to be great for letting me be with my family whenever I want.
