This guide outlines the importance of work life balance for busy people, and some views of how to achieve it more easily.
The importance of work life balance has become one of the most crucial aspects of the modern working life. It is a feature of modern life that was initially seen as the preserve of the professional man. Related to the issue of how they could work less and spend more time at home. However, as women have become more entrenched in mainstream high-powered positions, the importance of work life balance for all genders has become an important topic for discussion.
Don’t ignore importance of work life balance
Stress levels of working mothers and female staff have proven to be much higher than that in men, simply because we do more. One of the main reasons for this, is that women have long been under the stresses of running the home and just because we have also gone to work in professional roles, it doesn’t mean that the role of home maker, nurturer, mother, chef, cleaner, teacher and so much more has been abandoned. This is the reason that women arguably need to take the importance of work life balance more seriously than we currently do.
What a good work life balance should look like
A good work life balance will be different for all of us and it is primarily about how well fulfilled you are as an individual. It may be that you pride yourself on meeting all the workplace deadlines well in advance, while also having a hobby that you are dedicated to, as well as spending quality time with friends and family. For others, it is as simple as not worrying about work when you are at home and vice versa: not worrying about home issues when at work.
The importance of work life balance is thus essentially about creating a sense of calm and peace around the daily routine, while also finding time in there somewhere for the self. A good hobby to do after work, some time spent simply playing the slots at cafecasino.lv/casino/slots-games or a book are just some of the simple, yet effective things to include in the balance you create.
Why work life balance is harder for women
Below are the predominant reasons why a work life balance has proven a bit of an unachievable goal for many women. Looking after children and running the home haven’t simply been left off our list of to dos, but by joining the professional workforce we have only added to the work that women do. There needs to be some re-consideration, a re-think to determine how women can also look to achieve a better work life balance.
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The work life balance has always been harder for women
Because women are seen as being the main care providers by society they have been regarded as needing to spend more time in the home. Whilst children are young or there is a home to develop, many women stay home and neglect their own careers for the sake of the family. This has begun to change and as the concept of equality and feminism becomes more mainstream it is accepted that men can care for children and be homemakers as good as any woman. The fact though is that it is much more difficult for women to determine a fair work life balance as they are always working when in the home.
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Women spend time on family and not enough on themselves
Linked to the point above, women already spend an inordinate amount of time on the homemaking items and issues. From help with homework to washing, ironing, cooking, cleaning and even gardening, women seem to have been lumped with all of the work there is in the home, and this has been accepted as given for far too long. For professional women this is simply too much as they return home from the office to simply start work all over again.
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Women arguably have to work harder to achieve
Whilst in the employment sphere women are expected to work as hard, or harder, than the men in their employment sector. The idea of a glass ceiling for women has been discussed for ages and noted as one of the main stumbling blocks for women to reach top positions. The perceptions that we are the weaker sex in a work environment and that perhaps there are roles we cannot do is absurd and has been proven so, yet there is still quite an obvious need for women to do more to show commitment to the company, gain promotion to executive ranks or simply progress as would be expected.
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Stereotypes mean that women find it more difficult to adjust the balance in favor of work
Regardless of whether the professional woman in question is without a family at home and doesn’t have the care responsibilities as do other women, it is still frowned upon for her to work long hours and not have a family to go home to. It’s a stereotype that has adversely affected many a career woman and persists to this day. Women thus struggle to spend more time on building a career, even if they have the time and space to do so.
What women must do to challenge and push for balance
There is a two-fold approach to the problems of gender inequality and the idea of the necessity of a work life balance for all. The first is to change mindsets of both men and women, homemakers and professionals. To realize that a woman or man who is a homemaker or stay at home parent is probably engaged in the business of running and maintaining the home, raising children and supporting a family. This a full-time job and even they will need to look at the balance and some down time.
Secondly it is imperative for women in the workplace to push for the recognition that it is fair for them to spend just as much time at work building a career than our fellow men. Nurturing and homemaking is a shared trait as much as it is a shared responsibility and role in the modern world.
Final comments
The importance of work life balance is critical for us all. As soon as there is pressure to achieve and work, there needs to be the realization and acceptance that there is also a need for down time and time with friends and family. Conversely too much time looking after family and maintaining the home can be negative for your personal, spiritual and mental development. There must be balance, and balance for all, including the women out there who currently do too much.
