Take a birds-eye view of your life and ask yourself: What changes could make life easier? Sometimes we fall into a rut and assume our habits are set in stone. If you have a child, you put the oxygen mask on yourself first, not on the child.” When it comes to being a good friend, spouse, parent or worker, “the better you are yourself, the better you are going to be in all those areas as well.” Focus on the people and activities that reward you the most. Drinks with the work gang the night before a busy, important day? Bow out and get a good night sleep. Cornered every morning by the office chatterbox? Politely excuse yourself. And if you find your time being gobbled up by less constructive people, find ways to diplomatically limit these interactions.
#Life balance software
If you’re mindlessly surfing Facebook or cat blogs when you should be getting work done, try using productivity software like Freedom, LeechBlock or RescueTime. That may mean turning off email notifications and replying in batches during limited times each day. If email or internet surfing sends you into a time-wasting spiral, establish rules to keep you on task. Next, draw firm boundaries so you can devote quality time to these high-priority people and activities.įrom there, it will be easier to determine what needs to be trimmed from the schedule. This list will differ for everyone, so make sure it truly reflects your priorities, not someone else’s. Limit time-wasting activities and peopleįirst, identify what’s most important in your life. “Over time you start to notice that in your life, your parasympathetic nervous system will start to trump your sympathetic nervous system.”Ĥ. The more you do these, the more you activate your parasympathetic nervous system, which “calms everything down, (and) not just in the moment,” says Robinson. Short, meditative exercises like deep breathing or grounding your senses in your present surroundings, are great places to start. “The key is to find something that you can build into your life that will activate your parasympathetic nervous system,” says Robinson. Psychotherapist Bryan Robinson, who is also professor emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and author of the book Chained to the Desk, explains that our autonomic nervous system includes two branches: the sympathetic nervous system (our body’s stress response) and the parasympathetic nervous system (our body’s rest and digest response). These exercises require minor effort but offer major payoffs. “When I talk about balance, not everything has to be the completion and achievement of a task, it also has to include self-care so that your body, mind and soul are being refreshed,” says Puder-York. And if you’re really pressed for time, start small with deep breathing exercises during your commute, a quick five minute meditation session morning and night, or replacing drinking alcohol with a healthier form of stress reduction. Puder-York recommends dedicating a few chunks of time each week to self-care, whether it’s exercise, yoga or meditation. It helps lift your mood and can even serve a one-two punch by also putting you in a meditative state, according to the Mayo Clinic. It pumps feel-good endorphins through your body. And yet one of our most crucial needs - exercise - is often the first thing to go when our calendars fill up. “Resilient people feel a greater sense of control over their lives,” says Brooks, while reactive people have less control and are more prone to stress.Įven when we’re busy, we make time for the crucial things in life. By not reacting to the updates from work, you will developing a stronger habit of resilience.
So don’t text at your kid’s soccer game and don’t send work emails while you’re hanging out with family, Brooks advises. Brooks says that phone notifications interrupt your off time and inject an undercurrent of stress in your system. “There are times when you should just shut your phone off and enjoy the moment,” says Robert Brooks, a professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School and co-author of The Power of Resilience: Achieving Balance, Confidence and Personal Strength in Your Life. But it has also created expectations of constant accessibility.
“As life gets more expanded it’s very hard, both neurologically and psychologically, to keep that habit of perfection going,” she says, adding that the healthier option is to strive not for perfection, but for excellence.įrom telecommuting to programs that make work easier, technology has helped our lives in many ways. The key to avoid burning out is to let go of perfectionism, says Puder-York.
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