How to Balance the Demands of Career and Personal Obligations

Many people associate work-life balance with sacrifice. You either must cut personal activities from your schedule to allow more time to focus on work, or you put work projects on the back burner so you can dedicate more time to life at home. But what if you could achieve work-life balance without sacrificing personal time or risking poor job performance? Here are some helpful ways to manage the demands of career and personal obligations.

Set Limits
Learn to be aware of when you have too much on your plate and how to say “no” when you are asked to push yourself beyond your capacity. Evaluate your priorities at home and at work and eliminate or delegate the activities you can’t handle. Stop saying “yes” to things that aren’t meaningful to you or you simply don’t have the bandwidth to take on.

Manage Your Schedule
When it comes to work-life balance, scheduling is paramount. Knowing when and where you are needed and expected at work will help you prioritize your personal time. Talk to your employer about adopting employee scheduling software that gives you and your entire team access to up-to-the-minute schedules. This allows you to see upcoming shifts and plan your personal time accordingly.

Keep them Separate
With today’s technology, and more people working remotely, it can be difficult to detach from work even after you’ve put in a full day. Create a dedicated workspace and avoid communicating with colleagues about projects or checking emails when you step away from your desk. When you are done working each day, transition into your personal time by doing something relaxing like taking a walk, cooking a meal, or listening to music. If your organization uses online staff scheduling tools, you can rely on the employee scheduling app to stay connected even when you are not at your desk.

Creating work-life balance doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice the things you enjoy or the quality of your work. Incorporating these strategies into your daily regimen will help you create a better feeling of balance without dropping the ball on personal or work-related obligations. Learn how ScheduleAnywhere online employee scheduling software provides 24/7 access to real-time schedules to help you better manage work-life balance.

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