Mental Fitness in Action: Encouraging

Others

Learning Objectives

• To understand the

• To understand

You feel like you’ve lost control of your lifeYou often feel guilty about neglecting your

different rolesYou frequently find it difficult to concentrate

on the task at handYou’re always tired

58% of Canadians report “overload” associated with their many roles – work, home and family, friends, physical health,

volunteer and community service.

Session Overview

• Work Life Balance Defined

• Encouragement Defined

• Preferred Forms of Encouragement

• Your Style of Encouraging

• Application Activity

More than ever before, Canadians play many different roles in their lives. They are workers, parents, spouses, friends, caregivers of

elderly relatives and volunteers in their communities. They must also make room in their lives for taking care of their own physical

and mental well-being. Not surprisingly, achieving balance among all these competing priorities can be difficult. This overload can be

heightened by new technologies that were actually intended to make our work lives easier – through email, cell phones and other

electronic devices, many workers are expected to be available 24/7, making the achievement of a balance between work and the rest of

our lives even more difficult.Achieving work/life balance means having equilibrium among all the

priorities in your life – this state of balance is different for every person. But, as difficult as work/life balance is to define, most of us know when we’re out of balance. To find out more about your own

personal balance:

I feel like I have little or no control over my work life2. I regularly enjoy hobbies or interests outside of work3. I often feel guilty because I can’t make time for everything I want to

4. I frequently feel anxious or upset because of what is happening at work

5. I usually have enough time to spend with my loved ones

6. When I’m at home, I feel relaxed and comfortable7. I have time to do something just for me every week8. On most days, I feel overwhelmed and over-committed

9. I rarely lose my temper at work10. I never use all my allotted vacation days

11. I often feel exhausted – even early in the week12. Usually, I work through my lunch break

13. I rarely miss out on important family events because of work

14. I frequently think about work when I’m not working15. My family is frequently upset with me about how much time I spend

working

Work Life Balance

involves A balance between the demands (and enjoyments) of the job and the healthy management (and enjoyment) of life outside work (CCSHOS, 2008).

Work-life balance is a daily effort to make time for family, friends, community participation, spirituality, personal growth, and self care.,

Healthy work life balance enables people employees to feel they are paying attention to all the important aspects of their lives.

Why It’s Important A healthy balance between work and home should be a priority for everyone. Implementing proper work-life balance offers many important benefits. There are, however, many hazards linked with an unbalanced work and home life. Risks Poor health: Working long hours without taking time to relax will take its toll on health. Unresolved conflict: A lack of balance can create conflicts at work and at home. Poor performance: Taking on too much responsibility will lead to exhaustion and cause performance to suffer. Financial loss: The impact on health and productivity takes a financial toll on both individual employees and organizations. Benefits

Fulfillment: People who successfully implement work life balance improve their sense of

fulfillment at work and at home.

Health: A healthy work life balance decreases the risk of heart disease and other health problems.

Greater productivity: Being relaxed and well rested increases productivity and improves work performance.

Stronger relationships: Personal and professional relationships are strengthened and conflicts are avoided when there is work life balance.

Work-life balance is the ability to experience a sense of control and to stay productive and competitive at work while maintaining a happy, healthy home life with sufficient leisure. It’s attaining focus and awareness, despite seemingly endless tasks and activities competing for your time and attention (Davidson, 213)

Being Productive at Work

Maintaining Healthy and Quality Personal life

Attaining Focus and Awareness of What's important

Choosing to Be

A world that consists of human “doings” – not human beings – scurrying about to get things done, with no sense of breathing space, is not a place where you or I would likely want to live. I

don’t want to be part of a culture of overwhelmed individuals who can’t manage their own spaces or the spaces common to

everyone. I don’t want to live in a society, or a world, of time-pressed people who have nothing left to leave for future

generations. My guess is that you don’t either.

I choose – I hope – to live in a society composed of people leading balanced lives, with rewarding careers, happy home lives, and

enough breathing space to enjoy themselves. I’m convinced that for much of the world, the pace of life will speed up even more. So

the future will belong to those people who steadfastly choose to maintain control of their lives, effectively draw upon their

resourcefulness and imagination, and help others to do the same.

A work/life balance survey conducted by TrueCareers found that 70% of more than 1,500 respondents said they don’t have a healthy balance between their personal and work lives (Lockwood,2003)

Reflecting

What proprieties come to mind when you hear the expression: Work-Life balance: • Relaxation• Family• Fun• ServiceWhen there is work life balance, what words come to mind?

• Fulfillment – • Well-being, and personal well-being/wellbeing.• Simply being happy.• harmony with life.• Contentment

Experiencing Accomplishment

Building and maintinainRelatio

nships

Making a difference

Learning new things

Adopting Healthy routines

Define work-life boundaries: Set times that are focused on work and life priorities

Make a distinction between work and the rest of your life.

Protect your private time by turning off electronic communications. Don’t be available 24/7

Evaluate the nature social exchanges and their impact

When there are interruptions, it takes on average 20 minutes to return to our previous tasks

Drop activities that take time or energy: Do all of our activities add value to our lives and those of others? For example, spending time listening to gossip takes energy and impacts our attitudes. 

Manage online exchanges: Sometimes we become caught up in continuously checking and responding to online social exchanges both during our work and personal times.

(WEbMD, 2014)

Be Planned and Organized

Find an organizational method that works: ‘

• Some people use a technology-enabled approach with personal digital assistants (PDAs), shared online calendars (like Google’s), or project management software

• Others prefer to put pen to paper and use hard-copy lists and organizers.

• Find out what organizational methods work for your colleagues and teams (Packroo 2014)

Allow for Down Time

Take healthy breaks: Take time to refresh yourself. Try stretching, walking, or meditating/praying throughout the day.

Spend time in places that are quiet and uplifting: Being beside water, listening to the sounds of nature around you, or clearing your mind of the speed and complexity of life to experience small blessings

Take time off: Use vacation days. Working to the point of burnout and not performing well has few benefits over the long-term.

Model Work-Life Balance

• Managers who pursue work-life balance in their own lives model appropriate behavior and support employees in their pursuit of work-life balance.

• They create a work environment in which work-life balance is expected, enabled, and supported.

• Holding discussions within workplace teams provides an opportunity for identifying challenges and strategies for encouraging healthy work-life balance. (Heathfield, 2014)

Application ActivityWork Life Balance: