According to a January 2020 report of the Philippine Statistics Authority, the country has an employment rate of 94.7%. That’s over 70 million working-age Filipinos waking up every morning and going to offices, factories, and other venues of work.

Every one of those workers needs to balance being excellent at their jobs, raise a family, keep their health, and still have time to engage in a hobby or two. That’s what the concept of “work-life” balance is all about. It’s about having both a livelihood and a life, balancing achievement as well as enjoyment—an elusive goal for many.  

In this post, we’re going to talk about some ideas that will set you on the road to a remarkably fulfilling life.  

1) Make Realistic Goals And Plans

Having a plan and setting goals are usually positive courses of action. Whether written as a “To-do List” or simply tucked away at the back of one’s mind, plans provide velocity and direction for work.

But if you’re chugging along with a plan/goal that is unrealistic and unreasonable in the first place, you’re bound for the wrong destination. Many Type A personalities, for example, have a real tendency to put too many items on their “To-do List,” aiming for the stars, going after milestones that were obviously crafted during an adrenaline rush or a caffeine high.

You will not achieve a work-life balance that way.

Because the plan is fundamentally unsound, inherently unworkable or extremely idealistic, you will easily fall short. Or, if you succeed, it will come at huge personal costs.

A healthier attitude, if you want to achieve balance, is to start small and slow. That may sound counterintuitive in this era of the rapidly rushed, but the key in successful planning is to let things develop more “organically.” Be sober when setting goals. This doesn’t mean trading excellence for mediocrity but adopting an attitude of letting things come to you.

Know that plans can be revisited, and goals, adjusted. These things are not set in stone and you can speed your life’s trajectory if need be.

But for now, maybe you just need to slow down and take your sweet time.

On that note, we go to the next point.

 2) Listen To What Your Body Is Telling You

The most insightful and intimate conversation is happening between you and your body.

Your body is always telling you something, guiding you on the things you need to do to keep yourself healthy. For example, your stomach signals you when it’s time for a snack. Your neck and back tell you that your posture is wrong or that you’ve been sitting in front of the computer for too long. It imposes limits on you, so you don’t injure yourself. In the frantic mania of the rat race, many don’t pay these subtle cues enough attention, to their harm.

 In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) recognized “burnout” as an “occupational phenomenon.” It’s when a worker feels mentally, emotionally and physically drained because of unrelenting stress. You still come to the office every morning, but you feel out of it. You’re overwhelmed by the demands of work. Sometimes you’re disinterested in the job and the things that you need to do. Burnout afflicts millennials and boomers alike and impacts your productivity at work. Clearly, it’s detrimental to your health.  

Chest pains, hair loss, or for women, missing their periods, are signs of harmful stress. These alone should already alert you that there is something seriously wrong and that you’re “off balance.” This means some things need to change. Continuing on this destructive track will lead to conditions like heart disease, high blood pressure, substance and alcohol abuse, type 2 diabetes, and worse, death.

So be on the lookout for signs that suggest you might be working yourself to “an early retirement.”

That’s next.

3) Watch Out For Three Signs That You Might Be A Workaholic:

1. You work even when others are already resting.

Those colleagues that are “first to arrive” or “last to leave the office” have nothing on you. Because you never really “leave” the office. You take your work home and toil away even into the wee hours of the morning in order to get ahead or meet an important client’s demands.

Watch out because you might already be a workaholic and still think you’re just a “hard-working family man/woman.”

2. You think about work even when you’re supposed to be thinking of something else.

Being a workaholic is as much a mental state as it is physical. This happens in your head. It’s very subtle and may not even have any visible signs. You might be at home, sitting on the couch, watching TV. On the surface, you’re resting and slowing down. But if you can’t truly “unplug” and your mind is racing for the stack of papers on your desk, then you’re not really taking some downtime.

Your body will respond accordingly, and won’t get the rest that you deserve. As a result, you will come to your place of work sluggish and tired.

3. You have no other interests and hobbies.

You might be so focused on your job that you “rest” only to gather strength for the next day.

A workaholic will have no time to pursue hobbies and interests. In essence, the job description is his raison d’etre. And that is such a loss because hobbies are so enriching. They make for a multi-dimensional individual. Hobbies not only relieve stress but also help you develop new skills, increase your knowledge, unlock creativity and just turn you, overall, into a more interesting individual.  

4) Be As Engaged In Your Personal Life As You Are In Your Work Life

If you are to successfully have that work-life balance, you need to be as passionate about the “Life” part of the equation.

Just as you put in the effort at work, you also need to put in the effort in building good relationships with your family, your friends, and your community.

Spend quality time with your kids. Get to know them and make a day out of making simple art projects that not only brings you closer to them but also brings out the youth in you. Spend more time with your own parents. They are a wellspring of knowledge and experience. Have time with friends, for catch up sessions peppered with humor and laughter that will ballast you in those dreary days.

Go out to the community and volunteer. Offer your services to any place that could use a little help. This simple act will be the most paradigm-shifting thing you can do. It will change how you look at life. By being with family and friends, you are essentially staying in your own world, but by going out into the community and taking the time to know others, you will see a different side of things that might just be the most eye-opening and rewarding decision you can make.   

5) Create the habit of a balanced work-life

In all seriousness, you’re really not that busy—no matter what you say. You can make time...if you really want to.

If you make a habit of it, it can work.

Take it from the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama. While in office, in what can justifiably be considered as the most demanding position in all the land, he’s still able to have dinner with his wife and daughters. The drill is that once “6:30 PM” arrives, all meetings need to wrap up, and the Obama’s sit down for dinner where they talk about YouTube cat sensations.

If you love to follow “To-do” lists, make sure that you put down “Family time” and “Rest” in there. we usually take these things for granted, never even bothering to write them down because of our bias towards action, towards things that have immediate effects and visible rewards. (Unfortunately, investing time in the family doesn’t instantly have those immediate effects, so many think they are just wasting time that could have gone into something else.)

If you’re not going to prioritize these things and recognize them as part of your schedule, thinking you’ll be able to go away for some “Family time” as soon as you’re able to, guess what...that never happens.  

So let me ask you, is your work more important than that of the President of the United States?

6) Accept Life’s Realities And Your Limitations

“Work-life Balance” will mean and will look very different for different people. We have different life situations and so we will have to define the concept individually. You will have to decide what work-life balance means for you.

But in spite of crafting your own definition and painting your own picture of what it is, there will be many times when you’ll fall short.

The reality is, you probably wouldn’t be “perfectly balanced” all the time. The job will throw you curve balls that may require you to stay longer in the office, travel for business, or miss a family weekend.

We just have to accept that and not beat ourselves too much about it. And since we’re talking about acceptance, maybe it’s also time to accept your own limitations.

Maybe expanding the business to other regions is not the best move as it will cost you too much of personal time. Maybe getting more clients or doubling the quota is not realistic under this business climate. Maybe trading the car is not the best thing to do this year. Maybe a simpler life (aka. smaller budget) will make you less stressed and happier as a result.

If you accept your limitations and know your priorities, you will hit that work-life equilibrium that makes for a fuller life.

We at BloodWorks Lab support the hardworking Filipino worker. We have a “Pre-Employment Package” that includes: Urinalysis, Cholesterol, CBC, FBS, and Stool.  

In addition to helping you complete your pre-employment medical tests, BloodWorks Lab is your one-stop-shop for all your blood test needs. We are also proud to be the first laboratory in the Philippines to offer the Anti-Acetylcholine Receptor (IgG) Antibody Test and the Anti N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor (Anti NMDA Receptor) Antibody Test.

Our branches are in Alabang, Katipunan, and Cebu.