Work-life balance is a term that refers to maintaining harmony between your career and personal life. Enjoying a work-life balance is necessary for business success today, as overworking yourself can lead to burnout.
As mentioned above, "work-life balance" is a fairly new term. Traditionally, work was necessary for day-to-day survival for most people, so the average person did not see it as separate from "life." Most people worked alongside their family members, for their own sustenance or profit, and often on property they lived on, juggling chores and family duties throughout the day.
Only in the mid-1800s, with the birth of industry, did work become separate from daily, necessary tasks. Factory labor required consistency, travel away from the home, and set schedules to achieve business success, leading to a greater work ethic in society, but also the division of life and labor.
In our modern world, many strategies exist for balancing work and life, such as:
1. Taking regular vacations
2. Sprinkling short breaks throughout the day
3. Using days off strictly for family and leisure
4. Requesting flex hours at work
5. Scheduling time after work specifically for hobbies
6. Telecommuting or focusing on home-based businesses
The last one may be the most interesting because, in a way, it is actually bringing back the conditions that existed before the industrial revolution. Many people are once more working where they live, near their families, and for themselves. Instead of blocking out eight-hour periods for work or leisure, the average telecommuter or home-based entrepreneur handles both business and personal duties throughout the day.
In our view, this offers an alternative solution to the work-life balance problem. If this division was created artificially, it could also be removed.
As the economies of developed countries start putting more weight on providing services instead of goods, and more menial tasks are becoming automated, average people have more opportunities to make a living doing activities they enjoy. Work and leisure no longer have to be so separate.
Basically, entrepreneurship, telecommuting, home-based businesses, and freelancing all offer opportunities to work toward business success on your own terms, making work a part of your life and life a part of your work.
As the Chinese philosopher Confucius said, "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." Perhaps that is the ultimate key to work-life balance and business success.
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