Take Yourself Seriously
One of the hardest things for people – particularly entrepreneurs, owners, and managers – to do is balance work with their personal lives. Many people focus so much on work that it takes over. Spouses feel overloaded when they have to take care of everything at home. Children miss out on valuable time with a parent. Friends stop coming over and family stops checking in. A lack of work-life balance can truly destroy a person’s life.
I want to look even deeper than that, though. Outside of others feeling neglected, a professional life becoming your only sense of self can be harmful to YOU. It can affect your sleep patterns, your appetite, your health in general. A huge (and common) effect of this lack of balance is burnout. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently classified burnout as a job-related phenomenon. The three dimensions of burnout include emotional exhaustion or energy reduction, the negative emotional state of cynicism, and low professional effectiveness. All of these things will not only decrease your professional productivity – which is literally your goal when in this state of mind – but can also lead to anxiety and depression. Anxiety and depression are both mental illnesses that you do not want to face, especially alone. (If you are experiencing either of these issues, click here to find immediate help.)
While it’s important to take your work seriously, it is also important – possibly more so – to take your health and personal life seriously. Put in the same amount of energy into both sides of your life. Take time off work. Get a hobby. Set a weekly day to spend time with friends. Make yourself a priority.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
