S2E2 - Good Work-Life balance - P1
Season 2, Episode 2.
Listen here
Show Notes:
Obtaining and maintaining a a healthy balance between your work and your private life can be though! This episode is part 1 of 2, where we dive into some top tips on how to actively maintain your balance, and your sanity! You'll hear great advice like:
How to recognize the signs of a bad balance
How to live a whole life, and not just a work life
How getting AWAY from the computer can drastically improve things!
Show Script:
This is part 1 of 2 on a subject that is very close to my heart, which is how to attain a healthy work life balance.
Talking about Work Life balance can be a tough one, because a lot of people have very mixed, inherited or just straight up toxic opinions about it. You may bring up these concerns with friends, family or trusty coworkers and be met with phrases like: "Yeah, but you're lucky to at least have a job".
A lot of people laugh or scoff at conversations of Work-life balance because: They've never really had a good balance, and/or they've been gaslit that the bad balance they have is acceptable. Some people are masochists and love having a bad balance. This leads them to think anyone who "can't handle it" doesn't deserve to be in a good position. Its all nonsense though!
Let's do an acid-test right now. Do any of these sound familiar to you?
Staying late in the evenings to catch up on work, or because no one else has actually left yet?
Spending your weekends studying to keep one step ahead?
Skipping Lunch or just eating at your desk?
Feeling guilty about using PTO because it puts pressure on the team
Spending 10-12 hours a day in front of a computer
Feeling stressed, Irritable, very easily frustrated, not sleeping well?
Answering emails at 10pm, because it only takes minute, right?
If any of these are true, then you have got a bad work life balance my friend!
For a lot of these, there's a variety of factors involved. Culture, Boundaries, and perceived or self-imposed expectations. We're going to tackle a few of these today, through some top tips on how we can get your needle to move towards the right end of the scale when it comes to having a good worklife balance.
Before we start I want to be clear about something: Contrary to popular belief - Having a good work-life balance does not make you a bad employee. It makes you a significantly better one. The best developers I've had the good fortune to cross paths with have all started at 9 and finished at 6. The work they did during this time was phenomenal.
When you get your balance right, you'll be able to focus better, get more work done, and actually be able to sleep at night. It can add years to your life! Also, work-life balance is a massive factor in Developers moving jobs.
Lets jump into my top tips for improving your work-life balance!
Recognize the signs
This can be tough, as it requires frequent self-reflection and often people aren't use to that. Hear me out though.
In the vast majority of cases, bad balance doesn't happen directly from day one. It creeps in over time. Bad actors against your balance are not all mono-browed, moustache twirling villains! They can often be your favorite coworkers or a great boss who are maybe over-burdened, burned-out themselves or just struggling and need a hand to make it through.
Check in with yourself every so often. Journaling is great for this, btw!
How am I feeling? Am I happy?
Am I spending longer at work?
How's my sleep these days?
How my relationship with my partner? Am I often irritable, moody, etc...?
Knowing yourself and understanding your 'normal baseline' is a great way to then be aware when you've gone beyond those boundaries. Everybody's normal is different. In addition, keep an eye on the classic signs:
Constantly feeling stressed or under pressure
Getting very low-quality sleep, or unable to sleep
Mood-swings, frustration, irritability, low-tolerance for criticism
Headaches, Short-term memory issues, eye strain
Appetite loss, chest pains
You need to understand what a bad balance is, and to head it off before it hits you. Prevention is better than cure!
2. Live a whole life, not a work life
Look folks, we live in a capitalist society. You gotta play the game. Turn up, throw down and get paid. It is what it is. Don't let it consume your life though!
You have to clock off. Multiple studies show that working longer hours actually has a dramatic negative effect on work quality. You are ALWAYS better off clocking off, resting, getting a good night's sleep and starting again in the morning - rather than churning through the night.
Another important item to note here is that Always Online != Always Working. Just because you can be plugged in 24/7 does not mean yu should be. I actually recommend against installing work emails, chat programs, etc... on your personal device, if you can help it. On my team I actively ask people not to and advocate against it.
It can be hard to ignore an email or pull-request comment that comes in at 9.30pm, as it only takes "2 minutes" to read and respond. If you added up all of those "2 minutes'” throughout the year, you'd definitely be upset that you didn't spend them resting or being with your loved ones instead!
3. Get away from the computer
Get involved in Hobbies or Activities that get up and get your blood pumping. You can solve almost any problem in Python or Javascript but it will absolutely no help you if you end up with Neck, Back or even heart problems from constantly sitting. Sitting IS the new smoking, after all!
The biggest barrier against this is time, and I get it. It can be hard to juggle everything we want to do, right? So why not combine Exercise and socialising?
Go to Crossfit classes, swimming lessons or a Gym with friends.
Go hiking with your SO or family.
Heck, even just invite people in your circle to do random tasks or errands with you.
Drop in your dry-cleaning together and have a quick coffee afterwards.
Whatever it is, just get up and away from the computer!
Many developers find getting away from a problem is the best way to solve it! Sitting and staring at the screen trying to figure out an issue can only lead to frustration and eye fatigue. Go do something else and let your brain subconsciously chew on the issue! You’ll have an “ah-hah!” moment while doing something you enjoy, and then you can come back later and write that solution.
Summary
There we go - 3 great tips on how to maintain a good balance. Next time we’ll build on these and discuss 3 more