How to improve work life balance for your employees
Apr 15, 2024
Many, if not most, modern employers are making attempts to provide a healthy work environment that promotes balance and well-being. These efforts need to be—and are—complimented by a changing societal attitude toward the elements of a well-balanced life.
In the past, the phrase work-life balance was taken to mean simply limiting work hours to allow employees sufficient time to pursue personal activities. It reflected the idea of creating a balance between the time demands of a job and the needs and wants of an individual’s personal life. However, personal time can easily become completely consumed with “must do” tasks and chores, leaving little or no quality time for relationships, health, and personal growth.
Life balance, on the other hand, refers to the balance between different areas of an individual’s life, such as work, relationships, health, and personal growth, rather than just work and personal life.
Achieving life balance involves setting boundaries and prioritizing activities and responsibilities and making time for self-care and relaxation. It can also involve learning to manage stress and finding ways to cope with challenges and changes. This can be challenging to achieve, as different aspects of life can conflict with one another. An employee may feel pulled in different directions by the demands of work, family, and personal interests—leading to feelings of stress, burnout, and dissatisfaction.
There is no one-size-fits-all definition of life balance as it varies based on an individual’s values, priorities, and lifestyle. Companies that retain the best employees understand that each employee is different and create work experiences that can be tailored to the individual.
Fortunately, there are innovative ways to support employees in developing life balance. Concierge services are timesaving benefits that can help employees tackle their must do tasks while the employee is at work. As a result, they can focus on work and invest in high-value activities outside of work that enhance their overall life balance.
These services are especially helpful for employees who have busy schedules or who juggle multiple responsibilities. Some examples of tasks that a concierge service can handle include:
By outsourcing these tasks to a concierge service, employees free up time and energy to focus on self-care, relaxation, and the goal setting and planning that pave the way to true life balance. Employers are seeing the benefit of fostering this connection between work and life. Organizations that adapt to these new shifts in priorities attract top employees, increase employee engagement, and minimize costly turnover.
