Everyone desires balance or finely-proportionate energy commitments for work and life. However, the majority struggles to poise the two. At times, it resembles an unbalanced checking account with more withdrawals and fewer deposits. Resultantly, we feel empty, tired, and worn out. As per the 2022 Harris Poll, 70% of respondents claimed work was a significant stressor in their lives.
Finding joy in work and life is pivotal to ensure you stay hinged on the merry way and have time and energy for your loved ones. In contrast, the lack of harmony between the two drains energy and taints relationships.
That said, if your professional life impacts your joy, health, or personal life, it is time to alter your way of being and redefine your mindset about work-life balance.
While work-life balance is a phrase we have heard countless times, I encourage my coaching clients to seek work-life harmony instead. Wonder why?
Because achieving balance is not entirely in your hand, while building harmony is. So, it is best to embrace and follow the notion you can change by yourself. All that’s needed is to incorporate three crucial elements into your schema around work and life; energy, purpose, and joy.
Energy. Purpose. Joy.
The ability to manage energy, be centred on purpose, and find or engineer conditions to be joyful helps find harmony in work and life. Luckily, power, purpose, and joy are not beyond reach. All three elements are at our disposal and available for use.
Energy: Time management is our topmost concern as it helps us hit the balance. What about energy management? Excessive stress and overload often zap our energy and destroy harmony. Thus, it is a must to keep a close eye on the energy indicator and restore and refuel before the tank dries. Healthy eating, exercising, avoiding meeting burnout, and extended workdays all help conserve energy. So, be mindful of your ways and value energy equally as time.
Purpose: Knowing what is meaningful and meaningless, worthy and unworthy, impactful and futile is a telltale sign of being centred on purpose. Purpose helps you wake up excited with a matchless thirst for life. In turn, it fuels passion and empowers you to live every second to the fullest. Think of your purpose as a work of art. You are the master sculptor, chipping away all the rough edges to uncover the masterpiece underneath. It is about reaching your best self and building harmony with the world as a global citizen.
Joy: Joy is a choice we purposefully make each day. It is a state of mind and way of being. Often, we use happiness and joy synonymously. However, the two are different. Happiness lies in events, circumstances, and happenings, while joy is a reward for living a life centred on purpose with harmony. Happiness occurs. We seek things and people that make us happy. However, being happy is not a choice. On the flip side, joy is a conscious decision. Aptly put, joy is in the heart while happiness is in the face. The former is of the soul, while the latter is of the moment.
How to Find Work-Life Harmony?
Finding work-life harmony may seem tricky at first. However, you are just a few intentional moves away from the elevated state. To begin, you must take an inventory of your current life. Is your personal life in competition with your work life? It should not be. Instead, the two must flourish side-by-side, creating a beautiful and cohesive melody. Here are a few ways to do so:
Journaling: Pen your thoughts throughout the day to release the suppressed thoughts blocking happiness. Being in communication with yourself helps you identify if you are managing your energy right, living centred on purpose, and joyous. Answer questions like the following every day. Remember, you don’t have to write a thesis. A short answer would suffice.
- Am I centred on purpose?
- What triggers the most stress?
- How well am I managing time?
- When do I need to refuel the energy tank?
- Am I joyous?
The Power of Three: Identify and accomplish the big three rocks or tasks each day that brings you joy, a sense of accomplishment, and purpose. It is best not to overcomplicate life by following a laundry list of things to do. Plan your day to accomplish the big three. Using this technique, you will find time and energy to live in sync with your purpose and build harmony.
Establish Routines: Routines are repeatedly dos. They help live with a certain level of automaticity and preserve energy. You do not have to etch a new plan each day. A routine leads you to do meaningful things in the morning, evening, and night. For instance, I power down my laptop for an hour every day at 4:15 PM to enjoy the evening with my family, go for a stroll, or hit harmony. In short, routines help segregate work from life and stretch time so you can do what refuels your energy.
Be Present and Avoid Multitasking: Multitasking is a surefire way to ruin harmony. A harmonious life is about being present in the moment. So, silence the radio chatter in your brain and commit to the present fully. It not only helps balance the mind and spirit but also helps hit flow. Think of multitasking like a surge protector; plugging in several items, mind, body, and soul, into a single source consumes extra energy. On the flip side, being present and plugged into just one thing help manage energy and get more done in less time. Yes, it is hard to avoid multitasking altogether but aim to live in the present now and then.
Singing in Harmony
Once you find the perfect rhythm, your life will transform into a pleasing and harmonious song. Remember, intentionally seeking work-life harmony helps you elevate your mental wellness, physical health, and quality of life.
Choose Harmony. Practice Joy. Manage Energy. Find Purpose.
