Work - Life Balance

Figure 1: Work Life Balance (stock.adobe.com,2023) 

Humans are social creatures hence they are required to have a better mix of the activities which will enlighten their physical and mental well-being. In this context work-life balance plays a vital role since most of the people are yet to identify whether they live to work or work to live. 

Some of the authors have express their opinion over the captioned matter accordingly and listed the same as follows; 

  Work-life balance involves how much control one feels over the number of hours put in to work in comparison to the number of hours one makes available beyond the boundaries of work (Reiter,2007).

  Employees with improved work-life balance in organizations that focus on efficient and effective performance can contribute more meaningfully towards organizational growth and subsequent success (Naithani, 2010).

  Work-life imbalance leads to increased turnover intentions and perceived job overload (Rainayee, 2012).and has been seen to be inversely related to productivity and attrition rate (Aryee et al, 1999; Glass & Estes, 1997).

 Why we need work - life balance; 

 In the recent past global markets are growing rapidly with latest technologies where employers face severe competition over their competitors to achieve set targets. As a result of that employers seek extended corporation from their employees such as working extended hours, working from home etc. Therefore, some of the employees are in a difficult state of managing their work – life balance. 

As Naithani, 2010 said in the above statement it is crucial to have proper mix of work life balance even for the employer prospective since it will directly help to increase productivity of the employee and give you better results.

 Also, the working of BPO sector in India highlights the various health issues (sleeplessness, headache, stress, sense of exhaustion, lack of concentration & fatigue) that were the result of the nature of work and working hours even though employees enjoyed the benefits provided by company and the ability to spend more money in supporting family, there was hindrance in personal life (Chavan &Potdar, 2011) 

Therefore, upkeeping the mental well-being of the employee is paramount for the both employee and the employer in order to have a win - win situations. Apart from that researchers have recently identified that this directly involves with staff turn over ratio as well. When employees feel they are unable to balance their work-life in the present employment they tend to seek other alternative avenues which creates high employee turnovers in the companies which will adversely impacted to the organization. 

 Figure 2: Work Life Balance 

Tips to improve work life Balance

  Better manage of your Financials

 We are employed because we are required to manage our day to day finances. If we could able to manage our finances accordingly what we earn actually it is giving us a positive vibe for our mental well – being. Also, if you are having sufficient savings means you are not to be afraid of having any adverse factors in future since you have already planned for that. This comfort is let you to freely spend your free time with your loved ones.

  Time management 

In the today's context the most precious thing is the time, Therefore we need to priorities our work and need to plan the activities in advance to achieve best results. In my experience I always use a to do list with highest priority to lowest and then strike off once completed which will give me the confident feeling and it also allows me to have a fruitful leisure time as well. 

  Find a mentor or a role model for yours 

Each person who get success has a story behind them which will enlighten our inner self as well. If you have proper guidance to your carrier as well as the personal life it will be an advantage. Further if you have future goals in both the personal and work life it will be straight forward journey towards the successes because you don’t need to waste your time for unproductive things. 

  Mental and physical well being 

 It is crucial to have better mix of physical and mental well-being. Therefore, you have the ability to preserve some time for your leisure activities such as engage in sports, travelling, listening to music, meditation and family get togethers. If you have planned your week early you have the better advantage ahead of you. 

The following video will enlighten you towards the work - life balance; Video 1: 3 rules for better work-life balance.

 The Way We Work, a TED series 

 Conclusion 

The work – life balance is a crucial inventory in managing people in the organizations which helps to increase productivity and the motivation of the employee, loyalty towards the employer, Increased employee retention, attract new talent to the organization while up-keeping the personal life of the employees. Therefore, organizations should have more focus on this concept in order to get the maximum out of their employees. 

 References 

 Reiter, N. (2007). Work life balance: What do you mean?: The ethical ideology underpinning appropriate application. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 43(2), 273-294. 

 Naithani, P. (2010). Overview of work-life balance discourse and its relevance in current economic scenario. Asian Social Science, 6(6), 148-155. 

 Aryee, S., Fields, D., & Luk, V. (1999). A cross-cultural test of a model of the work-family interface. Journal of Management, 25(4), 491-511. 

 Glass, J. L., & Estes, S. B. (1997). The family responsive workplace. Annual Review of Sociology, 23, 289-313. 

 Chavan, S. R., & Potdar, B. (2011). A critical study on work-life balance of BPO employees in Idia. International Conference on Technology and Business Management, 966-77. 

 (stock.adobe.com,2023) available at : https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://t4.ftcdn.net/jpg/01/37/60/91/360_F_137609181_sk90DeE6uJK85DP0kGBcJexnC9FrbfWK.jpg&imgrefurl=https://stock.adobe.com/search/images?k%3Dwork%2520life%2520balance&h=360&w=539&tbnid=m9U3Q8t7hJDifM&q=work+life+balance+image&tbnh=88&tbnw=132&usg=AI4_-kQuuPk1nWw4mvIk3BKXMYmPgL64yg&vet=1&docid=Keihbr7tx3LwGM&hl=en-LK&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwij4LLLldj-AhU6SWwGHfa0BrsQ9QF6BAgLEAY 

Video 1, 3 rules for better work-life balance | The Way We Work, a TED series, viewed on Available on : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c_xYLwOx-g 

 Figure 2: Work Life Balance ,viewed on 2023,Avialable at ;https://www.mbaskool.com/business-concepts/human-resources-hr-terms/7045-work-life-balance.html Hooja H.R ,2018 , WORK-LIFE BALANCE: AN OVERVIEW , International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421