Work and life are complementary in nature, work creates values and values are paid for, the reward for one’s labour create financial stability, sense of independence and enables you to live a good life. Having said this, the relationship between work and life should not be at the expense of personal wellbeing, hence, the line between work life and personal life. Besides this, however, is life after-work which is a condition of retirement, redundancy, compulsory or voluntary exit from work? It should be noted here, that, life after-work is dependent on how well work life and personal life are spent.

What to do, to maintain a work and Life balance will include the following

• HAVE A PERSONAL SENSE OF WORTH AND WORK VALUE

Success on the job is determined by many of factors, however, the greatest of such is the sense of worth that the individual places on himself and the understanding that he or she is contributing positively to the organization and society at large. Such intrinsic motivation will bring about better performances and brings joy to the worker. It has the potential of reducing stress and act as an impetus for superior work performances. Regularly evaluate your work and place a value on it in terms of its overall contribution to the organization.

• SET DAILY, WEEKLY, MONTHLY AND YEARLY TARGET FOR YOURSELF

Performance appraisal is built around the worker’s day to day task and the presumption that performances need to be measured and evaluated. A Standard appraisal system is benchmarked on a proper job description, set target and KPI.  In order for a worker to meet this key performance standard, he or she needs proper planning and personal assessment of the work schedule and performances delivered on a regular basis. Without setting a target and evaluating performance level you may not see a deviation, and shortfall performance. When tasks are planned for the pressure associated with incomplete works is reduced, and more rooms are available to attend to personal life.

• PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR HEALTH

Health is wealth so the saying goes, but beyond this health is life. To stay alive we must pay attention to our spiritual, physical, emotional health. A regular medical checkup at least once a year is necessary. Health challenges quickly identified can be better attended to before it degenerates to a more complex health issue.

• CREATE TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

There will always be life after work hence paying attention while in employment to family, loved ones and friends is a requirement for enjoying a better relationship with them after work life. Never get too busy to forget your family, it is unwise.

• TAKE A LEAVE/VACATION IF YOU CAN AFFORD IT

I have written extensively on annual leave and the position of the law, to a reasonable extent choking oneself with workload without taking some time off is dangerous both to you and the organization. The human body system as pointed out in an earlier article requires adequate rest and rejuvenation.

• SAY NO WHEN THE JOB DEMAND IS NEGATIVELY AFFECTING YOUR WELLBEING

Juggling multiple task and functions might be okay at a certain age; however, understanding the working of your body system is something you must not toy with. Sometimes the body says no, but when you put it under undue pressure the system might break down as seen in incidences of fatigue and burn out.

• EAT WELL, EXERCISE REGULARLY AND TAKE ADEQUATE REST

Healthy food, regular exercises and adequate rest keep the human body system at an optimum level of performance. Dieticians advised that breakfast should be observed and taken as the most important meal for human, coupled with exercise such as walking, moving the body parts and good rest will keep you going well.

• MAKE A PLAN FOR LIFE AFTER WORK

Exiting work life is a reality that a worker will face, be it compulsory or involuntary exit, at a point, there will be a separation from employment. Ironically experience has shown that the fear of exiting employment create panic in some workers and some who left with inadequate planning are sometimes faced with financial challenges. It is the opinion of this writer that every organization should put in place a post-employment advisory department to help plan their employee’s exit and after work life. As an employee, you must also plan ahead by simply deciding on what you will retire into or possibly if you lose your job today what are the backup plans. It is normal to make such a projection.

Conclusion

Human development as seen today is the result of the creative and innovative mind of man and the refinement of the work process and procedures. To sustain the progress made as well as improve on it we need to constantly reinvent the work process, make it more accommodating for a human especially in considering the worker’s health and wellbeing. To achieve this man must remain healthy, the workplace must be made more conducive and the atmosphere for productivity should be improved upon. Work life, personal life, and life after work must be of critical consideration in the planning for tomorrow’s workplace and improved organizational performance.

 

Merry Christmas and wishing all my readers a prosperous 2019. God bless you.