Work/Life Balance

The new buzzword

Work Life balance is the new buzzword in corporate training and in government policy. Unfortunately it is easier to talk about than it is to achieve. Inside Out Life Directions aims to help individuals and businesses to develop a realistic, achievable and fun approach to creating a realistic balance that is good for individuals and for the bottom line. It’s part of our mission to “enable creative and generous living”.

What follows is a brief summary of what we cover in our Work/Life Balance workshops. This content is flexible and can be adapted to the needs of individual organisations.

The key components in this workshop are

• Why Work/Life Balance matters
• What the research says
• Your company’s policies
• What a balanced life looks like
• A personal action plan
• The skills you need to make it work
• Who else can help?

Why is it an issue?

When life is out of balance it costs both the individual AND the organisation. It is in no-one’s best interest to encourage an unbalanced approach to work (and life). Employees work for a number of reasons, and despite popular opinion, money ranks lower for most people than several other factors.

The personal cost

When working consumes too much of an individuals resources, other areas of life suffer. We all have limited reserves, and committing too much to work can lead to:

• Stress
• Physical illness
• Depression and mental illness
• Compromised safety
• Damaged relationships

These effects do not stay “in the box” when someone comes to work. They affect every area of life.

The bottom line

For businesses the cost is in:

• Impaired productivity through absenteeism, poor performance, injuries, lack of motivation and increased errors or faults.
• Profit lost through all of the above.
• Poor customer relations.
• Increased staffing costs through unnecessary retraining and recruitment.

Research

We present the latest research findings from Government and private researchers where these are relevant, such as the recent New Zealand initiative. The solutions we recommend are evidence-based, not just opinion.

Corporate culture

We aim to reinforce and support your company’s policies. We can also assist you in developing policies that support achieving work/life balance. We also understand that different businesses need different approaches. Key areas we can consider are:

• Leave for parenting and family reasons.
• Hours including Time in Lieu, overtime and flexible work hours (where possible).
• Casual vs. contract arrangements.
• Childcare.
• Personal development resources, funding and referral.
• Career path development and counselling.
• Outplacement.

What it looks like

A balanced life starts from the top and works down. It starts on the inside and works outwards.

Purpose

A balanced, productive and happy life begins with a strong sense of purpose.

Our workshops aim to help all workers to discover, clarify, and take responsibility for what’s really important to them. This includes their values, their sense of purpose and their goals and dreams. These are the foundation for priorities.

Balance

Surveys repeatedly show that the basic priorities for people are remarkably constant. These elements should be non-negotiable, and any job that seriously impinges on them is not sustainable. These fundamental, non-negotiable priorities are:

• Family and relationships
• Spirituality
• Mental and personal development
• Physical health and well being

Our workshops help workers to identify ways of maintaining the priority of these elements in the face of work demands.

The plan

Employees leave our workshops with a plan to build a balanced life, which includes being an employee of excellence. Employers leave with a plan to progressively remodel the workplace to maximize the potential for employees achieving the elusive balance. The plan includes:

1. Your Personal framework
1. What’s important to you?
2. What's your purpose?
3. What do you want to achieve?
2. Identifying the problems
1. What’s not being achieved?
2. How important is it?
3. How feasible is it to change?
3. Setting targets
4. Detailed personal life planning
1. Goals and plans
2. Moving to action
3. Regular check ups
5. Troubleshooting
1. Personal factors

• Motivation
• Procrastination
• Not knowing what to do
• Disorganisation
• Lack of focus
• Cost

• Difficulty accommodating Work/Life initiatives
• Lack of opportunities

6. When all else fails
1. Making the change to somewhere more suitable
2. Staying sane while working in hell.

Skills

Making these changes is not something that comes naturally. The skills needed to create a satisfactory work/life balance include:

• Communication
• Negotiation
• Knowing yourself
• Problem solving
• Resolving conflict

Extended workshops include teaching by modelling, role-playing and problem solving to develop the necessary skills.

Where to get help

Not all work/life issues can be addressed satisfactorily in the workplace. Neither is it the employer’s business to do so. However the minimum should be to provide information, referral and support to professionals whose job it is to address those issues.

This includes people such as:

• Life Coaches
• Counsellors
• Psychologists
• Nutritionists
• Exercise scientists/personal trainers

We provide a quality referral Network for Work/Life issues called Team 100.

What’s next?

If you’d like to improve work/life balance in your workplace, and see if it really does improve your bottom line, here’s what to do.

• Invite us to conduct a free introductory trial workshop (1 hour) to see if you like our style and methods. Call 4261 3239.
• If you do, invite us to do a 4-hour session with either a group of 10-20 key people, or a specific team or department.
• We also offer individual and group coaching.

About Inside Out Life Directions

Inside Out Life Directions is the private practice of Ken Davis. Ken is an Occupational Therapist with 13 years of clinical experience in the Illawarra Area Health Service as a clinician and 10 years as Department Head. This includes:

• Health and lifestyle education
• Manual Handling Training
• Staff and student recruitment, selection and training
• Chairman of O.H.&S. Committee
• Numerous Quality Assurance initiatives

He believes training should be fun and action based so uses

• Magic
• Multimedia
• Music
• Audience Participation
• Personal Action Plans

…to ensure participants have a great time and get the most out of their involvement.

He has also had experience in running training for

• WEA
• 313 Arts Media and Entertainment
• The Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney
• Private courses

He also began his work life as an Electrical Engineering Trainee in the now defunct Newcastle Steelworks, and is familiar with the industrial environment through this and his rehabilitation work.

He also co-ordinates Team 100, a network of personal development and business professionals who take part as presenters when necessary.

For more information

Phone 4261 3239
Mobile 042 525 4680
E-mail ken@life-directions.net
Web www.life-directions.net

Ken Davis