Is it just me or does modern life make it harder to manage work and family life? By the time I've finished my meetings, answered my emails, studied my to-do boards, checked my LinkedIn, laughed about the new meme on Instagram, written "happy birthday" on my long lost cousin's Facebook wall, scrolled through the daily news, taken a last-minute meeting, emailed back my friend from college, gotten the text that it's time to come home... you get the picture. Life is busy and it's filled with distractions for all of us. These distractions mostly come through incredible, extraordinary technology that allows us to be productive, distracted, and up-to-date in the race of day-to-day life.
With all of this available technology, it's easy to lose our center. That's why during National Work and Family Month, we are taking a look at being effective both in work and personal life and why employers should support this balance.
To-Do Overload
Studies show that with the advent of tech, since the 1960s, we've picked up an additional eight hours of productivity each day. But do you feel like you've gained eight hours a day? I sure don't. Technology, like smartphones makes us more efficient and gives us the freedom to choose when and where we work. This should make us more effective -- but does it?
It's become so easy to fill our time with extra tasks to get done and it's hard to keep up. We're not doing the simple things that replenish us and make us more effective, like resting, exercising, and spending time with loved ones anymore. We're losing the ability to prioritize and focus on what truly matters both at work and at home. The fact that I'm a CEO won't mean much unless I have meaningful relationships with my team and my loved ones, and take care of my physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Identify Priorities, Set Boundaries
As a husband and father of five, I've experienced firsthand this seesaw between my work and personal life. I realized early on in my career that work can always take more than you have to give. That's why I've decided what's most important to me, and set boundaries protecting those things. In my work life, I've set the habit of defining and declaring my core mission or one thing to do that day. In my personal life, I've set Sunday aside as spiritual and family time. In both of these conscious choices, I make the decision to focus on being present.
Ultimately, identifying priorities and setting boundaries both come back to one thing--quality. If you're not feeling good about yourself or your relationships, or if you're distracted all the time, it's hard to deliver your best work.
It's critical for companies to create healthy cultures and support employees across all aspects of their lives. By showing employees your company cares about all aspects of their well-being and lives, you can not only improve well-being but also boost engagement, productivity, satisfaction, retention, and much more - all while creating a stronger culture and great place to work. The result? A workforce full of people who help your business thrive.