How to Achieve Work-Life Harmony in 5 Simple Steps

Work-life balance and work-life harmony may seem similar, but they are not synonymous. Work-life balance refers to how people manage the time they dedicate to work and the time they spend on other activities. Work-life harmony involves your energy and incorporating work into the rest of life in a way that promotes happiness both at home and at work. 

In more simple terms, work-life harmony occurs when the different aspects of a person’s life coexist, fuel one another, and foster positive energy. Just like musical notes can play simultaneously to create a beautiful sound, chord or progression, work and life can be harmonious.  

 Achieving work-life harmony means reassessing how you integrate your work life into your personal life. They shouldn’t be in competition — they should coexist.

Work-life harmony fuels energy and purpose; promotes positive well-being in all aspects of life; leverages personal life and work life as mutual sources of positive energy; and results in transformational mindset and forward momentum.

Step One: Set Boundaries

Work-life harmony doesn't mean you have to operate at 100% in your work and life 100% of the time. It doesn't mean being "always on" or taking work calls in the middle of the night. Instead, it means creating firm boundaries and sticking to them.

Your boundaries will be unique to you, so take some time to check in with yourself and evaluate what works. It might mean shutting down at 5 p.m. on the dot and not signing back on until the next morning. It might mean working a four-day week so you can take Fridays off. Or it might mean letting yourself have longer lunches so you can go for a walk or see friends. Commit your ideas to paper, and then commit to your ideas.

Step Two: Plan Your Routine

Routines and rituals are so important to work-life harmony. You'll want to avoid overscheduling, as that comes with its own pressures and pitfalls. But set a routine that makes sense for you and be sure it includes enough downtime.

Slow living isn't always possible in our fast-paced world, but you can incorporate slow moments into your day, whether it's taking time to make a pot of French press instead of relying on the Keurig or sneaking in a few extra moments for a meditation session.

Remember that you are your biggest and best advocate for your time. So when you make time for what makes you happy, don't apologize for it. Communicate it with your colleagues so they know when they can and can't check in but own your time.

Step Three: Use the Tools You Have

No, you don't need to download a hundred new apps all in the name of time management but think about how you can use the resources you have to better protect your time and work toward harmony.

This can be as simple as shutting off all notifications during non-working hours and updating your status so others know you're not available.

To do this effectively, release whatever guilt you have about not always being on. Shift your thinking and know that your coworkers will survive without you while you sleep, eat, or do other things you enjoy. Unless you're an actual firefighter, you aren't needed to put out every damn fire.

If you are able to work on the go without it consuming other parts of your life, be sure to use mobile apps and tools so you can work from anywhere. This doesn't work for everyone (some of us need more separation), but others love the freedom of being able to do what they want while still checking in on work. Honestly assess which type of person you are, and go from there.

Step Four: Take Time Off

Seriously: Take. Time. Off.

A total of more than 30 days of vacation time are allotted to workers in France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom stands in stark contrast to the 10 public holidays in the U.S., which are not guaranteed to come with pay.

Sadly, we're far behind the rest of the world when it comes to time off, including paid vacation, sick time, and even parental/family leave. Part of that is systemic, but even when PTO is available, Americans just don't want to take it.

But time off is restorative and so, so necessary. At one company, FPS, they offer all full-time employees unlimited time off. But that kind of flexibility and trust comes with some pressure. To mitigate that, they recommend a minimum expectation of three weeks off per year — and encourage more when needed.

They also expect employees to rest when they're sick and not respond to notifications and to take a mental health day (or a "just because" day) whenever they need it.

 Step Five: Do Great Work

Finding harmony doesn't mean you work less or that your work isn't as good. It means that you find a routine that works for you, set strong boundaries, and take time to rest so that when you are on the clock, you're doing your best work.

Make your work time true focus time, so you can get your work done efficiently and then spend more time on what you like. Be sure you're meeting your deadlines and maintaining productivity. If you aren't, communicate. Ask for support when you need it.

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