Strategies for finding a healthy work-life balance

Despite our quest for a better work-life balance, we are working longer hours than ever before, and it’s literally impacting our health and wellbeing. A 2021 report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) put it plainly: ‘Between 2000 and 2016, the number of deaths from heart disease due to working long hours increased by 42%, and from stroke by 19%.’

The pandemic saw us work even longer hours, so the trend is clearly going in the wrong direction. As this Forbes article rightly says, we need to work smarter, not harder.

The benefits of a work-life balance are plentiful. Whatever workplace status we enjoy, we can beat the effects of overworking with work-life balance strategies that employers can immediately put into action. There’s a business case for helping people find a good balance, so let’s dig into the issues and solutions.

Focus on strategies for completing tasks

A great place to start is to recognise where organisations’ focus lies. For instance, do leaders still focus on where people work rather than how they work? They are in good company. Research reveals that 69% of ‘negative or no-growth’ companies fixate on where people physically work. An alternative approach is to adopt and encourage a ‘productivity anywhere’ workforce model. This means the building blocks are put in place to manage projects and tasks instead of people and places. Milestones are counted instead of hours.

When leaders switch emphasis from where to what and how, they could begin to sow the seeds of improved workplace culture. In turn, this could reduce the cost impact of high employee churn rates. People who enjoy the flexibility their employer provides in where they can be most productive will be happier. In fact, 78% of employees say that flexible working has a positive impact on their quality of life, according to the UK Working Lives Survey.

Employees appear willing to embrace strategy change, too. Employees are far more adaptable than  anticipated  As discussed in this study one big concern during the pre-pandemic period was that remote work would lead to drops in productivity. This didn't happen. Despite new challenges like poor health, family care responsibilities and shifting to remote working technology, employees remained productive through the pandemic. 

As a business leader, you can be reassured that employees can be more adaptable than you  think. The benefits of a work-life balance will reveal themselves once leadership teams begin to emphasise tasks over working hours.

The role of an employer in encouraging a work-life balance

Adopting a new strategy that favours a productivity-first approach is one thing – knowing where to start is another. Our advice is to ask people. Employees have already made it known that time is important. This list of the top 10 things people want contains mostly time-related perks such as flexible hours, unlimited holiday, and early finish Fridays.

Of these, flexibility is something that can be addressed right up front. In making flexible working a priority during onboarding, businesses can begin the process of changing company culture. The alternative is to be vulnerable to losing talent. 54% of office workers would leave their job if they could have one with more flexibility, according to Gallup. This isn’t a statistic to take lightly.

As a leader in your organisation, there’s a lot to be said for leading by example. Workplace change can be easier to manage if leaders adopt a work-life balance and show others that it means a lot to you, too. The basics might include your leadership teams finishing work at 5pm, and not answering business calls outside traditional working hours – two simple examples that could have a noticeable impact on employees.

More examples might include efforts to encourage time-management, so that work doesn’t overwhelm people’s personal lives. Share your own experiences, and provide training and classes that contribute to employee skill sets on keeping work and personal lives separate. Invite external guests to share their knowledge and experience too, and attend those workshops alongside employees. Don’t make everything about work, and encourage everyone to take time off.

How an employee can find a good work-life balance

If you’re an employee reading this and you’re working longer and harder, ask yourself why. Reflect on and absorb the reasons. Is it you choosing to work longer hours or your employer? The first thing to know is that things can and should be different. There are guidelines in place to help you manage how you should and shouldn’t be working, such as your right to request flexible working. The UK government has details about maximum weekly working hours, and here’s a list of the UK’s top 20 companies for work-life balance, as well as the best cities for work-life balance should you need a change of scenery!

Working long hours is often a choice we make ourselves, when we feel compelled by circumstance. It can be driven by the fear of losing our jobs, or upsetting managers and colleagues. But long working hours, as shown by the WHO data from 2021, is detrimental to our health and wellbeing. A good employer will do what it takes to help you be happier at work, and to be your best self. What’s in it for them? You might even become more productive, which is the ultimate aim of any self-respecting organisation.

It’s difficult to find the perfect solution to discovering work-life balance because we’re all different. Organisations have to find what’s right for them and their employees. Our tip is to start at the onboarding phase, introduce a culture-changing ‘productivity anywhere’ mindset, and lead by example. And take the time to self-reflect, which can lead to ideas about what the next steps should be.

The inherent gains are increased productivity, creativity and happiness, and people have a better chance of experiencing less stress. Remote work is the biggest draw for top talent, so be the organisation that not only offers a flexible approach to business, but one that puts the benefits of work-life balance at the top of the agenda.