10 Tips for a Better Work Life Balance
Hanna Oltmanns - November 04, 2021
Life is not about stressing yourself out to have an adventurous weekend after a full week of working – life is about creating a lifestyle that fits your personal needs and makes you happy in the long term. A good work life balance. At least that’s how we think! It’s totally legitimate (and very healthy) to have a relaxed weekend too. We like to do that a lot! Nevertheless we believe it’s important to plan both your time for work and your free time, so that you can have a healthy work life balance for the long run. We at Suntribe have taken the time to reflect on how we as a team create such healthy lifestyles individually, and have put together 10 tips that will hopefully help you do the same!
1. Establish “leisure routines”
Planning activities that you really enjoy and making them part of your everyday routine will refresh you and help you to find new creative potential. For example, starting the day with an exercise outdoors can be a really great way to take your mind off all the things that have to be done that day. It will allow you to breathe, enjoy the beauty of the morning and lays a great foundation for a better work life balance.
“My favourite way to start the day is to get up early and go for a skate or surf before I even have breakfast. That way I start the day with an activity I really enjoy, it gives me energy and new ideas and I don’t feel like work is the first thing I have to do in the morning. It’s also super nice for waking up slowly and oftentimes I get to see really beautiful sunrises!”
Suntribe Co-founder Julia Beyer
2. Breaks, breaks, breaks
We like to take breaks, to read, do sports or meet friends over lunch. Whenever we feel like we’re not working productively anymore, we take a short (or sometimes also longer) break. This also is a great step in finding a work life balance that fits your needs.
“When I find myself not being able to concentrate anymore, I usually take a 15 or 20 Minute break to do some stretching or Yoga. This really helps me to get my focus back and start the next session of work a lot more refreshed!”
Suntribe Customer Happiness Manager Hanna Oltmanns
3. Keep your day flexible whenever possible
While it can be really great to have set times for work each day, it can also be lifegiving to keep those times flexible every now and then. Allowing yourself to listen to what you would like to do and need right now, can help to create a work life balance, and lift the workload to make it feel easier.
“Because I’m an avid surfer, one of my favourite things about working for Suntribe is the flexibility. Because the ocean is not very flexible, and neither are the winds nor the tide. So I can find a balance between my work and my favourite activities by freely managing my schedule in line with the ocean. If it’s a beautiful morning, then I’ll go surfing then, and spend the afternoon working and vice-versa. This freedom makes the work feel easier and makes me feel like there is a real beautiful balance between the work and my general life.”
Suntribe Co-founder Karl Roos
4. Make sure you plan leisure activities as strictly as work
It’s important to make space for fun activities in your schedule, not just for work. Try to come up with at least one activity you’d like to do the coming day or week that’s not related to work and plan your work activities around it, not the other way around. That’s what we call a great work life balance!
“Typically I already know some time in advance when I want to go surfing or meet friends, and ensure that I won’t have any calls or meetings at that time. Knowing that I have something planned for later that day helps me to work productively.”
Suntribe Co-founder Julia Beyer
5. Note it down
When you work remotely, or even when you work at an office, it’s common to still think about work during your break, even if you’re not working at that moment. To be able to enjoy your free time fully, it can be helpful to write down any ideas or thoughts about work that come to mind during your off time.
“I can’t help but think about work during my off time too – so instead of feeling bad about it I note down the idea I just got for example, and that way I’m able to go back to enjoying my free time.”
Suntribe Co-founder Julia Beyer
6. Change your work environment regularly
We all know that a change of wallpaper can feel quite miraculous. Instead of always working from the same desk in the same room, try something new and change your work environment to a different scenery regularly. This will help to keep your work more exciting and will give you new perspectives, not only regarding the view, but also on work matters.
“I like to work from different places. For example I sometimes work in my van, have joined co-working sessions at friends’ places or similar. It’s very important to me to have a calm working environment with few distractions, and I like to be able to look outside the window. It helps me to change my working environment every now and then since it makes it more exciting.”
Suntribe Co-founder Julia Beyer
7. Create your work to be a welcome addition instead of a consumption of your day
It’s not healthy if your work consumes your whole day. If you can, be sure you plan in small breaks and activities to take your mind off work things. Create your working hours to be a welcome addition to your day, rather than the whole purpose of why you get out of bed every morning.
“I like to take small breaks in between my work to go for a walk, or spend time with my son. I really enjoy being able to be present with him when he wakes up from his afternoon nap. The fact that I am able to adjust my work at Suntribe flexibly, allows me to enjoy my role as a full time mom and have work be a welcome addition to my everyday life at home. It’s really nice to have my own work life in the middle of all family activities.”
Suntribe Customer Happiness Manager Hanna Oltmanns
8. Unplug and be present in your free time
Usually all of us have our phones with us everywhere we go. However, this also makes us available always and at all times. It can keep us from enjoying our free time as soon as we receive an email or a text that we quickly answer in between. Make it a habit to switch off your phone when you are done with work. Shut down your computer and be present in the moment. You will notice how restful it can be when you know that you’re not available at this very moment. It helps you to savour the moments of your free time and really focus on the beautiful activities in your day, creating a healthy balance between work and free time life.
“Of course a downside to being able to work from anywhere and to have everything online is that it might sometimes be hard to disconnect from work. In a sense, you’re always working because the company is always on your mind. Urgent problems might pop up and need solving at any time. To keep myself sane I make sure to turn off my digital devices a couple of hours here and there and make myself unreachable. That always helps!”
Suntribe Co-founder Hampus Tarras-Wahlberg
9. Make exercising a priority
Don’t cancel your surf session, yoga class, run, or swim because you feel too tired after a full day of work or too busy because you still have some work to do. Make sure to prioritise your exercise. Keep in mind that exercising means a healthy body, which means a fresh mind, which in return helps you to function better and enables you to get work done in less time. If you can, try exercising in the mornings, instead of the evenings. This way you will avoid the temptation to drop out because you had a full day. If you get up half an hour early, you will be able to go for a run or a surf while enjoying some fresh air. Maybe you could even take your bike to work. Exercising in the morning will help you have a straight mind to take on today’s tasks.
“I try to make it a routine of mine to do a small yoga session right after waking up. I enjoy stretching my body once I get out of bed. It gives me some time to myself before I dive into all the duties that the day will bring and enables me to take things slow in the mornings!”
Suntribe Customer Happiness Manager Hanna Oltmanns
10. Structure your day so that it works for you
It’s so easy to just run with the crowd and have a working routine like everyone else. However, most of us forget that all of us are unique and that we enjoy working in different ways. Whenever you can, try to structure your day so that it works for you and fits your very own needs. If you need to rest a bit more, before starting to work, be sure to listen to yourself and do something else that you enjoy first. If your friends have planned something exciting for the afternoon, make sure you work in the morning so that you don’t miss out on a fun activity that will give you new energy and inspiration.
“The thing I love the most about working for Suntribe is the flexibility to structure my own day. If it’s sunny outside I might take a few hours break during the day and work at night instead. Or if there’s a fun event in the afternoon I’ll just wake up earlier and work more in the morning. We’ve also structured it so that we can work from anywhere which is something I love – it’s all done online. I usually travel a couple of weeks every year and it’s fantastic being able to go to places outside of the normal vacation months. Flight tickets and accommodation are cheaper, and there are less crowds.”
Suntribe Co-founder Hampus Tarras-Wahlberg
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