Work-Life Balance 4: What Do You Want to Balance

This continues our series outlining how to balance your work and your life

We have already shown how the definitions of work-life balance differ between the employer’s or the employee’s perceptions. The objectives of balance differ between genders, marital or family status, age, and more. We also shared opinions on whether or not you can achieve balance. We will examine what exactly you want to balance. We will begin with what you want from life. Our next post will explore what about work draws us.

Determine What Life Expectations You Wish to Balance

You cannot balance work and life until you understand what you want to put in the balance on the life side. For example, I crave serving society. I remember when my 8 year tenure as a community leader ended. Someone asked “So what will you do for fun, now that you have the time?” I wanted cry out “They just took away what I do for fun!” That happened in 1994. I’m still trying to find what I do for fun.

You select what you want to place in the life side of the balance scales. Choices may include:

• Spend more time with family
• Camping, traveling, skiing, sailing, rock climbing, flying, or skydiving
• Picnics or walks in the park, mountains, forests, by the river or the sea
• Movies, theater, museums, concerts, dancing, or galleries
• Stay at home to play games, learn, laugh, sword fight or do puzzles
• Talk, dialogue, share, understand, and read
• Serve in soup kitchens, food banks, hospitals, or community programs
• Visit or entertain family, neighbors, friends, elderly, shut-ns, or others
• Spend more time on my personal interests and activities
• You can also do all of the things I listed above by yourself
• Read or write books, articles, blogs, poetry, or other literary endeavors
• Research family, political, national, or world history
• Take a nap, go to bed early, wake up early, or just stare out a window
• Meditate, ponder, exercise, practice yoga, tai chi, or just relax

Wednesday we will explore what things you want to do at work that you may not be doing