Most employees still have to be aware of how important work life balance is. Some people indeed do their jobs at the end of the day. But many more have to stay in their chairs at night and even at the weekend. Afterward, they realize too late that this can lead to stress and burnout.
Did you know? Chronic stress is one of the most common work-related health problems. Wrike’s stress statistics show that 94% of workers report stress at work, and nearly a third claim their stress level is high.
It makes work-life balance an essential part of a healthy workplace. Here, work life balance means maintaining a balance between work and home to reduce stress and prevent employee burnout.
How Do We Promote Work Life Balance for Our People?
We know it takes work to 100% provide a work-life balance for our employees. We often feel that employees are equally responsible for changing their attitudes toward work and home life and truly understand the importance of work life balance.
However, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), all workers have the right to a safe and healthy workplace. Do you know what we’re talking about? But no need to worry, leaders. We can do some fundamental things to help our people find and maintain the work balance they need.
Provide flexible remote work whenever possible.
What is work-life balance in the workplace? Well, it has different meanings depending on how an employee looks at it. Workers love employers who can let them manage their own time, as this can reduce their stress. According to FlexJobs data, 79% of workers agree that flexible work improves work-life balance and reduces stressful work days.
Employees value companies when they know they can do the job without strict rules or excessive supervision. According to the Owl Labs survey, 51% of employees seek work-life balance through working remotely.
Reexamine workloads regularly.
According to a 2018 Deloitte survey, the top three workplace factors that can lead to employee burn-out are:
- Lack of management appreciation for their work (31%)
- Unrealistic due dates and expected results (30%)
- Continuous work for long hours or weekends (29%)
Review your job distribution to ensure your people have achievable workloads. Here, having regular conversations with your teams is vital. You’re going to find out who’s capable, busy, or even stressed and overloaded.
Consider offering cool-down days or synchronous breaks.
Synchronized breaks mean your daily activities are temporarily closed to give employees a holiday. Recharging breaks can take place between Christmas and the New Year. After rest, we expect people to feel much more relaxed and charged.
Let’s look at the Spotify story; one of the companies with work life balance is rolled out. At Spotify, the leaders gave their staff Wellness Week. It’s a whole week for them to take time off work and recharge.
Gain insight into your employee’s situation.
Knowing your employees’ needs and circumstances can help them achieve a better work-life balance. Are you people feeling well? Or do they have workplace issues? These questions should be asked because 82% of workers diagnosed with mental illness do not report their health to their manager, according to the data.
And, managers, it’s also our responsibility to be good at communicating and getting to know our employees. According to the Harvard Business Review, employees who say their managers are not good communicators are 23% more likely to suffer a decline in mental health.
Be serious about supporting your employees.
Around 87% of employees expect their employer to promote a healthy work-life balance, according to a Glassdoor survey. So listen carefully to that fact. Here’s how we can help our employees grow and develop:
- Being there when they need us
- Allow them to excel and develop
- Acknowledge them when they succeed
- help them grow in areas where they are weak
- Provide honest feedback throughout the year (not just once a year)
In simple terms, treat our people as we would like to be treated.
So, managers, what is work life balance? Simply put, those with work-life balance are optimistic about the time they spend working and the time they spend away from work. Our job is to create a healthy work environment and ensure they never feel overwhelmed by work-related stress.
