Your Say, SA: Most South Australians happy with work-life balance — but the perfect equilibrium requires patience
MOST South Australians are happy with their work-life balance — but striking the perfect equilibrium between work and home is a challenge that demands patience, persistence and flexibility. Need some help? READ OUR TOP 10 TIPS.
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STRIKING a perfect balance between work and home life is a challenge that demands patience, persistence and flexibility, says yoga teacher Dr Evelyn Krull.
The talented geologist left CSIRO to set up Yogita Yoga in Highgate six years ago and never looked back.
“People ask me ‘don't you miss the science?’ But I always will be a scientist, because I keep researching and learning new things,” she said.
“That's what keeps it interesting.”
While most South Australians (60 per cent) in the latest Your Say annual survey were happy their work-life balance, there was plenty of room for improvement.
A third of those surveyed felt their balance tipped too far in the direction of work, while 7 per cent wanted more work.
About one in five people (18 per cent) spent more time on recreation and leisure this year, but twice as many (38 per cent) were spending less time on these pursuits than they were 12 months ago.
Dr Krull offers practical advice to those wanting to shift the balance and find more time for things that matter most, such as “pause and breathe”, “take baby steps” and above all, “stop procrastinating”.
“People usually think of balance as something easy, you know, you balance two things,” she said.
“But take the yoga example, if you try to balance on one leg, it's actually pretty hard, finding a balance is actually difficult, it’s dynamic and constantly changing, we have to be flexible.”
As a talented research scientist, Dr Krull was increasingly pushed into management roles, where she had to look after a team of people and compete for funding. But just as she felt the frustration rising, her interest in yoga was increasing. Fortunately she also found solace in the natural world.
“I'm a strong believer that nature is the best healer, it's so good for the mind,” Dr Krull said.
“It doesn't matter what you do, as long as you get outside, among nature, among the greenery, that's good for you.”
TEN TIPS TO MAKE YOUR WORK-LIFE BALANCE BETTER
Distinguish between what is ‘urgent’ and what is ‘important’:
For example, it is urgent to pick up the kids from school, pay the bills that overdue, etc. and it is important to be a loving parent, understanding partner and to follow your passions. If we cram all the ‘urgent’ things into our day, there won’t be much left (both in time and energy) to what is ‘important’.
Take time for meditation:
Ideally first thing in the morning, start with as little as one minute. It’ll help to take the crazy rushing and overreacting out of your life
Pause and breathe:
It allows you to not fall back into conditioned responses (instinctive reacting) which can be over-emotional, but to respond from a base of calm
Take baby steps:
Everyone is telling us to have these massive goals, but that’s very likely to result in failure; remember the saying: “every journey begins with a single step.” E.g., take time for a little walk, then a massive hike.
Keep a journal:
Whether it be electronic or manual: it helps to structure your time and block out ‘me’ time and make it a priority. Make it a habit to write down a few thoughts each morning, because this is when the brain is mostly undisturbed and free to think outside the box.
Find a community that supports you:
Not your Facebook friends, not the Jones’s, but a community of like-minded people. It might take some time to find them, but keep looking …
Be truthful and accept reality — and stop procrastinating
Sounds logical? A lot of people fool themselves by hanging on to jobs, friends, habits that have past their used-by date, only because they are used to it. Confront the elephant in the room, otherwise you are just procrastinating. Don’t always wish things to be different: accept reality first!
Stop looking for quick fix solutions:
Whether it be losing weight, getting fit, or getting an education: there are no quick fix solution — be prepared to put in the hard work and time!
Stop wasting time:
Whether that be on the internet (phone, computer, etc.) or cleaning the house three times a week.
Don’t multi-task, pause instead:
Our mind tends to be pendulum that swings between the future and the past and conveniently bypasses the present moment; resisting the urge to always ‘doing’ allows the ‘lid’ to come off and things bubble up that may show you answers that you were searching for.
SOURCE: Dr Evelyn Krull, Yogita Yoga