Fulfilment is essential!

The act of balancing work (or studying) and life outside of that work is something many of us find hard. It’s a concept that can be totally subjective; different cultures, backgrounds and societies all have a part to play in what is considered a healthy balance. Things can’t be perfect or ideal all the time, finding what works for you can be incredibly challenging.

I think that it may not always be realistic to expect a direct 50/50 split down the middle between your job and fun-time but, more importantly, the focus should be directed towards how fulfilled you feel within these spaces of your life.

To work towards a balance that fits your personal circumstances, an understanding of what this is exactly and how you can get the ball rolling should be investigated!

What do we mean by a work/life balance?

The concept could feel alien to you or maybe like it’s something you’ve never fully got to grips with – I know that I have definitely felt this way before and I guess that’s why I am sat here today, writing this!

To make things a bit clearer, here are some simple ideas of what a nice balance could look like:

• Hitting your targets within work/studies whilst still making time for your family and friends
• Ensuring that you are sleeping and eating enough to suit to fulfil the needs of your body
• Taking a break from the mental space of work/study whilst you’re at home

Things you should look out for

Be open to things shifting around, priorities changing, responsibilities altering etc. This is the beauty of balance, in my opinion – it Is everchanging, but in the long run allows you to learn more about yourself, and the road ahead!

I think that a helpful idea to keep in mind is that a crossover between personal life and your study space is inevitable, it can’t be totally removed, the thing to work on is recognizing which elements are pushing the imbalance in a negative way.

Let’s summarise some ideas that can add disturbance:

• Working more than necessary
• Health problems, childcare
• Travel to work
• Not enough boundaries between home and work
• A schedule that is rigid

A lot of these things can be out of your control, and that’s okay. Being aware of them is crucial to allowing yourself time to rebuild and figure out where/when this balance can be introduced. The extra energy you put into this will be worth the results!

Discover how valuable it is

Working towards a balanced work-life situation can produce numerous benefits, not just professionally speaking. Firstly, a lower overall feeling of stress – weighing up responsibilities that tie you to home or your job can paint a clearer picture and bring more happiness to your day.

Your health is also a huge factor to mention, both mentally and physically. A lack of balance and structure can lead to various conditions because of long-term stress, let’s focus on ourselves and our own lives, consistently and lower these chances once and for all!

Furthermore, the idea of ‘less is more’ feels quite relevant to this topic; if we spend less time building relationships with people who aren’t valuable to our lives, this could make the balancing act even easier.

It’s also vital to remember that taking a break or taking breaks is a priority that lots of us don’t consider. Yes, it’s good to be productive and get lots done but without taking scheduled pauses in your day just puts you closer to burning out and feeling anxious.

What’s a realistic picture?

Everyone has their own circumstances, of course, but a few things that can be important to remember. Making sure that you are working the right number of hours for your lifestyle both financially and socially can be a huge factor in finding balance. I find that when I start to push more of my energy into work than might be needed for that day, my time at home can start to suffer.

I think we should normalise the idea of allowing ourselves to cut-out for the day, allow that feeling of release from your tasks of work and ease into a time that is separate and different. I don’t mean that we should necessarily think of work as doom and gloom to run away from, but it can be helpful to recognise that everything requires its own attention to fully appreciate its nature.

5 tips to progress with

Let’s think of some tips moving forward to create and promote a balance between work or studies and home life:

• Give yourself goals that realistic
• Make your personal health a priority
• Don’t forget to communicate
• Make the most of tools around you
• Ensure you have boundaries in place

You might already feel like your work/life balance is at a good level, if you are trying to get to grips with a better balance between studying and working on the other hand, we made a video that could help! Simon and Ros explain here: ALTV – Balancing studies and work – YouTube

We also have a collection of FAQ’s that have been answered within our Knowledge Centre, if you have any other areas that you need support with, take a peek: FAQ Articles Archive – Accountancy Learning

If you have any questions, please get in touch with us, we are always happy to help.

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