This is a guest post written by the WorkLife Office. Visit their website for more information.
When people at MSU talk about the WorkLife Office, it’s not surprising when they often add “balance” to the end of our title. One of the major roles of our office is to help MSU faculty and staff find the resources they need to juggle their multiple responsibilities – at work and in their personal lives. But what about this concept of “balance”? Is it just a myth, or does it really exist?
Here’s what we tell people: it’s time to rethink the idea of balance. More often than not, balance doesn’t mean your time is evenly split between work and personal life. Balance is more about a feeling – do you feel gratified or overwhelmed (or somewhere in between) by your work and life responsibilities? More and more, we see a unique blending of time and focus between these worlds. Work and life are not mutually exclusive realms. Who we are at work is not separate from who we are at home and vice versa.
If we check our work email at home, or take a personal call while we are at work, it does not mean that we have failed at work-life balance. It just means that we are humans with many intersecting identities that make us the unique individuals that we are.
Here are some quick tips about work-life balance:
- Rethink “balance” – it’s not always a 50/50 split. Sometimes work is more intense and other times our personal lives require more of our focus.
- Reflect on your work-life habits – notice if you prefer to keep work and your personal life separate, or if you prefer a blended model. Don’t try to force yourself into a different work style – find the one that works for you and your productivity.
- Consider work-life stressors – take note of the types of projects, or times of year when you feel the most overwhelmed. When you begin documenting these, you are more able to plan for them in the future.
Pro-tip: schedule a consultation with the WorkLife Office to help you identify your work-life balance needs. Call 517-353-1635 or email worklife@msu.edu.