A work/life balance is highly important for everyone to achieve – if you don’t, there are serious risks. An imbalance could result in higher stress levels, family difficulties, and even health problems over time. Here’s what you need to know about the all-important work/life balance.

A work/life balance is the amount of time that you spend working versus doing other things in your life. This could be spending time with your family, friends, enjoying your hobbies, or even just relaxing.

If you spend six and a half days a week working, for example, you’re not enjoying a good work/life balance.

There’s no defined figure as to what makes a good work/life balance, it varies depending on age, job, and personal circumstances – basically, as long as you’re fulfilled in all aspects of your life, you have achieved it.

Why is it Important?

Working too much is not generally good for your health if you don’t have the balance of downtime to offset it against, however, you might be lucky enough to be in a situation where you enjoy working.

It forms part of your playtime i.e. your partner works with you or most of your friends work with you but on the whole, for most of us, too much work can cause you to become stressed, to lose sleep, and even ultimately develop physical ailments. It can also cause your personal relationships to suffer, as you aren’t devoting the time or attention necessary to maintain them.

You can end up feeling highly personally unfulfilled if you’re not able to realise personal hobbies or ambitions outside of work. A work/life balance is essential if you’re going to enjoy fulfilling relationships as well as both improved mental and physical health.

How do You Achieve It?

The first step to a work/life balance is to give yourself goals. Think about what you want to do in your life. Could it be making time for friends? Taking your partner out more? Or spending more time with your children and indulging in your favourite hobbies.

You then need to create firm boundaries between your work and personal life – you stop work at a certain time, and it’s stopped until the next day.

With your new schedule, you’ll be able to better prioritise the things you need to get done – ultimately making you more productive.

Financial Balance

A better work/life balance is the key to a happier, healthier life that goes for your finances too. If you have a happy balance of income over expenditure then you are less stressed. For example – when an emergency hits you ,or you fancy splashing out on a new car or holiday, you can because you have earned it.

Remember that taking out any form of credit to help pay for whatever you want/need at any specific moment, whether it be a payday loan, a short term loan or a personal loan. They have consequences, your financial balance is put to the test when you borrow money because you will have to pay back more than you borrowed. So, only borrow what you need and can afford and keep your credit down to a minimum, this will help your financial balance and inevitably, your life balance.