What is Meant by Work-Life Balance?

Does it ever feel like your job is taking over your life? Or do you seem to have so many personal obligations that you can’t give 100% at work? We know we need work-life balance, but finding harmony between your professional and personal life isn’t always as easy as it sounds.

Work plays a major role in our lives. It takes up much of our waking hours during the traditional workweek. That’s why it’s so important to make sure that we are also taking care of the areas of our lives that keep us healthy and happy.

Professional fulfillment can be a part of that, for sure. But well-being also involves all of the things outside of work that makes your life worthwhile, including your family, hobbies, health, and relationships (not to mention prayer, sleep, exercise, balanced meals, and relaxation).

At a Glance

Work-life balance generally refers to a balance between your personal and work life. The goal is to strive to keep that balance so that we are managing stress and burnout by fulfilling other areas of our lives that aren’t swallowed up by work. Remember: That “balance” may shift at times and is never really a 50/50 split. We can accept that there may not ever be a balance, but we can strive to feel more grounded and balanced by making a personalized plan, exploring ways to improve that balance with our manager, taking breaks, and creating set boundaries between our personal vs. professional duties. If we’re in a position to change jobs and our conversations with our manager are unsuccessful, we could also explore other opportunities that offer more flexibility.

What Do We Mean When We Say “Work-Life Balance”?

Work-life balance is usually defined as an equilibrium between your professional and personal life. When you keep things balanced, no single element of your life dominates and overwhelms the others.

Work-life balance is the concept that you effectively manage your professional life and responsibilities so that you are productive and successful at work while ensuring you have plenty of dedicated time to live a fulfilling, grounded, personal life.

That’s a general definition of the concept, but “work-life” balance can also mean different things to different people. Researchers suggest that this is because this balance is all about individual perception. It’s something you feel when your work and non-work activities are in harmony and are compatible with your current goals and priorities.

The things that make your own work-life situation feel manageable may differ depending on your needs and your situation.

For working parents, it often means finding a way to juggle the responsibilities of a career while still finding time for a fulfilling family life. With rising numbers of older workers, work-life balance may focus more on staying active in the workforce while finding ways to manage health issues or disabilities.

Major shifts in how we work have also helped change the definition of work-life balance for many people. For many people, work-life balance meant clocking out at 5 p.m. and not thinking about work until you showed up at the office at 8 a.m. the next day.

Many times people think balance is a 50/50 split but that is not always the case. For each person, the balance may look different and will shift during different seasons of their life. The important part of having balance is that the person does not feel that one area of life is draining and depleting the other.

What Work-Life Balance Is Not

Work-life balance isn’t about slacking off, skipping work, or putting in less effort. Obviously, we all have our good and bad days, but there are ways to manage the days we’re feeling a little “off” that don’t involve hurting yourself professionally.

Procrastinating or shirking your responsibilities aren’t effective ways to cope. You might feel a little better for a bit, but it ultimately creates more problems in the future. Work piles up, deadlines fly by, and your employer might start to notice that you’re not putting in your best effort.

The goal is to find a harmonious balance that works for you, between the demands on your time and energy, without neglecting important areas of your life.