Balancing Work with the Rest Of Your Life – Learning How To Prioritize
Meditations for Career Changers
Balancing Work with the Rest Of Your Life – Learning How To Prioritize
“Balance” for New Yorkers has a different meaning than “balance” for people and professionals outside of New York. As an NYC Career Counselor and NY Career Coach who has worked with thousands of New Yorkers and people all over the USA, I can appreciate what balance means for everyone.
Balancing Work And Life
Everyone talks about balancing your work and personal lives, but how do you really do it considering all the roles and responsibility we have. When one’s life is effectively balanced, we are most satisfied and productive. In order to attain harmony we need to think about the things that are most important to us in our personal and professional lives and pursue those activities. This can raise hard questions, but making a conscious choice about our priorities helps us achieve greater satisfaction.
Exercise:
Suppose you have been given $100,000 to spend as you please on the values listed below. Review the list of values and then proceed to make your selections. You can place all your money on one item, or spread it over several items. Regardless of how it is split it should add up to $100,000.
Values budget sheet:
– Success in your field
– Fulfilling permanent relationships
– Love and admiration of friends
– A job that has lots of status
– To own a business
– Self-confidence, a positive outlook on life, peace of mind
– Healthy lifestyle
– Civic/volunteer activities
– Lifetime financial security
– Freedom within your work setting
– A creative work environment
– To travel extensively
– Time to spend with family
Guide Your Life’s Decisions Accordingly
Ideally, you want to make up the amount of time you spend on activities with your values and guide your life’s decisions accordingly. For example, is it more important to you to be a member of the local school board or a member of your professional association? Is it more important to take that extended business trip or to come home a day earlier for family concerns? Is it more important to stay in your current job or pursue a more exciting opportunity?
Recognize Changing Priorities
You need to recognize changing priorities. Life circumstances change. If the importance of different roles changes, re-balance your investment in them. For example, as children get older they require less caregiving. You can then spend more time on work, volunteer roles or nurturing relationships and/or developing interests.
Constantly Adjust
The key is to remember as our values change we need to constantly adjust. One feels most fulfilled when their life is meaningful. This process begins by identifying what is presently most significant to us and then budgeting out time and choices accordingly. The best way to make sure this occurs is to constantly fine tune our lives by being honest with ourselves.
If you would like to know more about Balancing Work with the Rest Of Your Life and How To Prioritize, please give Lynn a call at 212-289-5197.