Currently, global unemployment is at an all-time high, and employees are facing different wrath of the pandemic—especially while struggling to strike a perfect balance between personal as well as professional life. During the lockdown, entrepreneurs, as well as employees, took a toll with such sudden changes. Those who managed to survive the testing waters are sailing towards success. Also, another highlight is women entrepreneurs, in general, have been doing this for several years, but with the wake of COVID-19, their struggle is being noticed and appreciated in the industry.
Another aspect that this pandemic has highlighted is the work-life balance. With the lockdown imposed in several parts of the world, the work-from-home (WFH) approach was adopted. Though this approach safeguarded the employees from the virus it sure did give rise to several other problems.
Rise of Hyper-communication
With the adoption of the WFH approach, every employee was reachable 24*7 and this surged from the hyper-communication. Digital connectivity is at an all-time high, which is helping businesses adapt, circumvent, and respond to the disruptions waged by COVID-19.
The prominence of work-life balance has been emerged mainly because of changes in environments like technology, economics, culture, etc. Due to these changes the nature of work, organization, employment, leadership, and relationship is also changing. Many alterations are happening on a social level and institutional level and of course these changes are having an impact on the personal lives of individuals. As a result, it is of utmost priority for people to discrete work life from their personal life in such a way that neither intrudes on the other.
In the recent coronavirus outbreak, many organizations have implemented voluntary or perhaps mandatory work-from-home policies. Even though people have done this before, working from home because of the coronavirus may feel like a new world. Besides the challenge here is for women is managing both personal as well as professional life. Due to the pandemic, women employees have been facing a double burden because of lengthier shifts at work and added care at home. The outbreak has shed light on these longstanding gender inequalities.
The Common Burnout
Between socializing, parenting, running errands, and working, the coronavirus has significantly altered the way we live our lives. While there are certain benefits of working from home, the transition can be difficult, and finding balance within your life can become more complicated.
Nowadays a very common dispute that everyone is facing and may have heard about is burnout. This happens when immense stress is placed onto a person, culminating in “chronic stress.” That pressure may be precipitated by lots of things, from outrageous workloads (and no work-life stability) to virtually now not feeling valued. Even worse still, the pressure caused by such a lifestyle can lead to different physical issues like excessive blood pressure and heart disease.
Importance of work-life balance
As in this challenging and pandemic situation balancing work life and personal life is overwhelming for any working-class especially women. The majority of women spend a disproportionate amount of time handling housework, childcare responsibilities, and office work too.
Work-life balance has become the prime concern for all the entrepreneurs to live a healthy life. However, so much work pressure can lead to severe mental and physical mishaps. There have been—yet to be confirmed—theories around that happiness and productivity are directly proportional viz. that a cheerful employee will be more productive and fruitful for the organization. Thus, the prosperity and well-being of a person, both physical and mental, is vital as it waves the success of an organization.
The current crisis has increased the distress among us and also due to work-from-home and other gathering restrictions, people have been deprived of social connections. All these factors can drastically affect the well-being of an individual.
Acknowledging the same, below curated are few strategies that can help safeguard personal life, promote health, and maintain productivity levels during such difficult times.
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Set Defined Working Hours
Maintain a proper schedule for work hours and strictly abide by them. Though we can be available all the time we need to maintain a proper plan for the day to maintain the work-life balance. Consequently, by the end of the day, you will have productive work hours and sufficient time for yourself and won’t end up getting frustrated.
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Set goals
Daily write down the tasks for the day or set the goals weekly/monthly wise. This will also keep us motivated as the tasks are accomplished. Understand the work, set them by priority, and look for the bigger picture. This will help you relief from the stress of daily tasks piling up.
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Smart work
In times like this, the most effective approach is to work smartly and identify the most effective and efficient ways to achieve goals. This usually incorporates leveraging other people or resources, also makes use of self-awareness to build on strengths and delegate when suitable. The more self-awareness you obtain about your work style, the more you will find ways to work smarter, not harder.
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Take regular breaks
In a normal workday, you would have presumably stopped to chat with a coworker in the hallway, got up to refill your tea or coffee, and left the office for a lunch meeting. When you’re working from home it can be more troublesome to find those break times, specifically if you’re feeling extra pressure to perform and show your worth.
Make sure to schedule proper breaks throughout your day and hold yourself answerable for those rest times by putting them in your calendar. Having lunch with a family member or going for a short walk are great ways to spend some quality time away from work. By frequently disconnecting yourself from the work environment for 10 or 15 minutes, you’ll feel refreshed and ready to be productive when you get back to the work station instead of drained and unable to focus.
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Communicate your needs
One of the best ways to survive through a rough transition is to be open and honest about your needs. Overcommunication is crucial, especially during the period of increased isolation and social distancing. Your co-workers won’t be able to know if you are caught up managing tasks and your family might not know you’re engaged with an important project if you don’t tell them.
Be upfront with your family members by telling them what is going on in your work life and being respectful of their responsibilities as well at the same time. If you are an employee, this applies to your professional relationships also. If you feel exhausted by your workload or if you are struggling to make connections in a remote setting, speak to your manager, and find solutions together. Proactive communication can help to avoid messy situations and frustration down the road.
Sustainable Work-life integration
Perhaps it is time that the expression ‘work-life balance’ is laid to rest, and, in its place, and we pay attention to the term ‘work-life integration’ as well. Leaders who make this transition may well find that their resilience is strengthened because the mindset is about accepting and incorporating multiple demands upon our time and talents, not continually attempting to keep many plates spinning at one time. COVID-19 has given rise to numerous distress and challenging the economic, health, and psychological communities worldwide. It seems like a good time to rethink and re-imagine the traditional working routine and switch to a more sustainable one.
Presently, employees are already facing the adverse impact of the pandemic with sudden lay-offs and salary cuts so there is a need to maintain the work-life balance with a degree of caution. Hence, employees have to ensure that their work remains a priority and the schedule does not compromise the job security. Make sure that the breaks are taken in-between make up for the increased productive hours. Stay true to the priorities and the time scheduled for the task. Assigning yourself to specific work will be a better approach than being the go-to- default person for every task. This will also boost up opportunities for the teams to better distribute the work and swiftly adapt to the changing of an evolving workplace.
Also read,
- Legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg- A Timeless Justice
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Master the Art of Work-Life Balance with These 7 Quotes From Successful Women Leaders
Read full issue: The 10 Women Business Leaders Overcoming the Pandemic
