Work/Life Balance

updated by Renzie Baluyut on October 2008.

Proper Work/Life Balance practices can cut down on your everyday aggravation, and allows you to accomplish more as well as get more out of life.

So what’s up with this whole Work/Life Balance thing?  While the term has been around a while now, you don’t exactly realize the importance of Work/Life Balance unless you’ve been working for quite some time now.

The modern-day work culture rewards those who spend as much time as possible at the office, those to hardly use their leaves, those who essentially give their lives to companies that- in reality, don’t exactly offer much in terms of job security.

Add to this the long commutes to and from home, the tight deadlines, and even working on weekends.  The end result is that people don’t get to spend time at home as much, relationships take a backseat, you only catch 4 hours of sleep, you drink more coffee, and you get stressed out both at work and from the home front.

If you’ve been working as much as I have, and handled people in the course of your careers, you can definitely understand what I’m talking about.  Who wouldn’t want to spend an extra week off to spend time with their kids?  Or do some traveling?  Or take up a new hobby like baking or advanced Photoshop?

The concept of Work/Life Balance preaches the idea of separating your job from your personal life, and developing a mindset that helps you effectively cope with the demands of work, as well as your personal obligations and relationships.

Work/Life Balance is important because it recognizes your multiple life-roles, and your need to fulfill those roles as effectively as possible.  That’s like saying, “Yes, I’m here to work and get as much done as possible, because I’d like to go diving on the weekend, and then take my mom out shopping on Sunday.”

Proper Work/Life Balance allows you to spend more time with family, friends and loved ones. Or spend more time doing the things you really want to do. Wouldn't you want that for yourself?

Observing proper Work/Life Balance practices in real life allows you to:

• get things done, whether at work, at home or for yourself, thereby giving you a better sense of accomplishment.

• lead a more comfortable life by managing stress down to a minimum.

• handle challenges more effectively.  You can take anything life throws at you when you feel better and more confident about yourself.

• recognize the need to be healthy and stay healthy, and taking more proactive efforts to keep your body- as well as your mind and soul- fit.

• be a happier person, by attending to your own needs to relax and have some recreation

• have healthier relationships, by making better use of your time and actively coming up with ways to bond with family, friends and loved ones.

• be an agent of change. If you’re happy, wouldn’t it be a good idea to surround yourself with happy people as well?

• set goals for yourself, by taking a more proactive effort in getting exactly what you want from life.

• take charge of your own development.  Because you realize the need to be the best you can be, through constant learning and self-improvement.

There are a lot of articles, podcasts and other online resources just on the topic of Work/Life Balance.  On a personal note, Work/Life Balance has helped me realize exactly what’s important for me- family and friends who really matter, what I want for myself, and how I want to spend the rest of my life.

More than just eating well, staying healthy means staying fit, keeping your mind sharp and essentially staying pain-free. Taken at Gerry's birthday, right in front of a buffet table of all places, September 2008.

Renzie on Working Out

Staying healthy is essential for good Work/Life Balance, yes I know that.

Here’s the thing- we’ve never quite realized the value of good health and good everyday habits until we get struck by some disease or disorder or some such.  So in my case- it’s my knees, my ankles, and lately- my thumb, or the pointy finger of my right hand.

Staying healthy is really a mix of regular exercise and proper diet and nutrition.

If you really think about it, many of these chronic disorders (yeah, I’m sorta stuck with ‘em for life) could have actually been avoided by observing some simple everyday stuff.  Like drinking lots of water, or getting as much sleep as possible, or even visiting the gym.  If you really think about it, we can improve the quality of our lives by consciously taking the time and the effort to do very basic, very simple (and very important!) little day-to-day things.

This conscious effort to make my life more healthy and stress-free has only been a recent development. The past 33 years of my existence has pretty much been inactive- sedentary, even.

No surprise that I’ve accumulated so much extra weight. Throw in a case of flat feet and weak ankles, and an early onset of gout (had it as early as 22 years old!), and that’s a disaster just waiting to happen right there (unless it already happened)!

Body pain from working out, or muscular fatigue, is completely acceptable- but gout? Foot strain? Knee pain? The occasional shoulder pain? Just gotta ride the damn things out.

I suppose I deserve all that, considering I’ve never put the time and effort into taking care of my body. Which is what this entire blog is all about now. Of course, things COULD get worse, or I could simply take charge and manage all these inconveniences by doing what I have to do- losing weight!

To be completely honest, working out never came naturally for me.  Never did. In fact, I don’t think I ever was the active type.  I sucked at sports, I’ve led a rather vegetative life (couch potato that I am), and I’ve never been known for any extraordinary physical achievement.

While my new career as a keyboard monkey is still pretty much sedentary- it does allow me a good amount of free time. And if I were in any way sensible, that free time should be channeled going to the gym and fighting off these ornery globs of fat clinging to my body.

I know, it takes 21 days to form a habit. But I’m fighting against 33 years of bad patterns of behavior and about an equal number in years of decadent lifestyle.

So yeah, working out for me IS an effort in itself.  Of course, I don’t really have a choice.  You can even say that I’m into it out of sheer desperation.  More for health reasons, for the sake of my continued existence, I NEED to lose those extra pounds.

And with working out comes living a low-carb lifestyle, a healthy amount of rest and relaxation, and basically taking things nice and mellow- at age 34, I’d say things would be looking up if I stick to the plan…

Wanna live stress-free? Surround yourself with happy people, do some traveling, and take your partying out-of-town! It's all about getting a change of atmosphere, especially if you've been working hard all week.

Renzie on the Stress-Free Lifestyle

Just as important as getting a job and finding a place of your own, is your need to unwind and have some fun. We all have varying needs of socialization, play, culture and even romance (erm, yes, maybe a different kind of play as well).  Now that you’re living on your own, you’re pretty much free to do whatever you want in terms of recreation, so long as you can support your activities with what you’re making.

More than just a nights of wanton excess, hedonism and debauchery (which are all pretty alright, if you ask me), you may also want to consider other forms of recharging yourself:

• 

  I've channeled my love for eating and my newfound passion for digital photography into a brand new food blog! All this talk of Work/Life Balance is making my hungry!

  Travel. Head out-of-town.  Whether it’s a road trip with your friends, or a quiet getaway to a lush vacation spot, traveling gives you experiences you can never get from reading a book, or watching TV. You’re actually there! Take time to try out new things, immerse yourself in new cultures, make new friends, take pictures, whatever!

• Get into a hobby. Here’s a chance for you to feel passionate about something. Whether you’re a collector of sorts, or one who appreciates a certain activity, you want to be able to do the things you want, and maybe even have the opportunity to make money out of it someday.

• Unwind with a massage. A day at the spa can do you wonders. Try going for different things like wraps, aromatherapy, or even facials and other special treatments.

• Have a pet. Pets are incredibly effective at reducing stress. Whether it’s a dog, a cat, or even small animals like fish and rodents- there’s acertain kind of fulfillment that comes from caring for a small companion. Personally, I like cats. But I wouldn’t mind taking care of a dog or some fish if I had the chance.

• Learn to let go.  Don’t sweat the small things.  Remember that short and simple prayer?  “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”?  That’s what it’s all about, man.

• Surround yourself with happy people.  Don’t let the miserable and unfortunate drag you down.  Foster meaningful relationships, soak up instead on positive vibes, and feed off each others’ warmth and energy.

• Listen.  A great way to manage relationships.  Rather than imposing your will on the situation, seek first to understand what’s really going down.  Then you can go all man-of-action right after all you want.

• Surround yourself with music.  Sing.  Dance.  Listen to whatever you want.  Music is always a good way to soothe your soul.

• Appreciate the simple things.  You can find joy in very everyday, very common things.

• Give yourself importance.  My eight hours’ sleep is important.  My ‘Me’ time is important.  My opinions are important.  Realizing this allows you to treat yourself right.

Rest, recreation and relaxation is important for proper Work/Life balance.  Remember that a healthier state of mind only leads to a healthier you.  You can achieve more if you’re in a better mood, and that’s what it’s all about!   Seriously, life is hard enough as it is without having to stress out so much. These days, EVERYBODY seems so stressed out. Which is why one of the most important things- right there at the top of anybody’s to-do list- is to learn to chill and just take things easy!

Online Resources for Work/Life Balance

• Read up more on the topic of Work/Life Balance here on Wikipedia.

• Even CNN has its own section on the topic.  Check out their special reports section on Having it All: Work/Life Balance.

More useful links and resources coming up as we find ‘em online.

Cheers, everyone!