Tips For Improving Work-Life Balance

When applying for a new job, candidates will have different wants and needs, but a good work-life balance is something that almost everyone is looking for these days. Being able to balance personal life and professional life can help to reduce stress and prevent burn-out, and as mental health becomes more of a priority for employees and employers alike, focus is being placed on improving work-life balance.

There are several reasons why your employees may have a poor work-life balance, for example; they have taken on more responsibilities at work or their family life has become more demanding, and this will have a direct impact on their job performance. As an employer, it’s often in your organisation’s best interest to implement changes that support a healthy work-life balance for your team. Promoting a good work-life balance can result in increased employee engagement, morale and retention rates, and it can benefit your brand reputation too.

If you’re wondering what you can do to improve work-life balance for your employees, below are some useful tips to consider.

Rent a serviced office space

For some, working from home enables them to spend more time with their family as they don’t have to commute to work every day. However, for others, it results in them working more hours than they should and lots of employees find it harder to switch off in the evenings and at the weekends when they’re working remotely full-time.

Renting a flexible workspace, such as a serviced office, can help your team to separate their work life from their home life. When your employees come into the office, they will find it easier to leave work at work, so to speak, and they can relax and recharge at home between shifts. There are so many additional benefits of serviced offices too and a traditional workspace can be a cost-effective investment for businesses of all sizes.

Consider a flexible working arrangement

You don’t necessarily have to use a serviced office full-time and allowing your employees the opportunity to try hybrid working can help them to find a good work-life balance. More businesses are choosing to implement flexible work arrangements, from flexible working hours to compressed workweeks, and they are proving to be very popular among employees.

Giving your team more control over where they work and when they work makes it easier for them to balance their professional and personal responsibilities. They can also ensure they have time for everything that’s important to them and they’re not compromising on their happiness or health to thrive at work.

Encourage employees to take annual leave

Almost all employees are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year and it isn’t uncommon for employees not to use all of this holiday time, especially when they’re busy at work. Make it as easy as possible for your employees to book annual leave and remind them that they still have days left to take during the year. This will help to ensure they’re having enough time off to spend with family and friends, and to rest and relax.

If possible, you should also arrange for someone to cover your employees’ roles in their absence, this can help to prevent any concerns regarding coming back to an unmanageable workload. Your team may be more inclined to book time off when they know that their workload won’t be building up in their absence. Encourage your employees to set an out-of-office and not check their work emails whilst they’re on annual leave too, so they can have a real break from all things work-related.

Arrange regular catch-up meetings

A recent CIPD survey found that 34% of employees think their workload is too much and 22% don’t have enough time to get their work done within their allocated hours. If you don’t regularly catch up with your employees, you might not know that they’re feeling overwhelmed and things will continue to build up for them, negatively impacting their wellbeing.

Try to arrange one-to-one meetings with every member of your team on a regular basis. Catching up with your employees in private will provide them with the opportunity to tell you if they feel overworked and they can open up about any concerns they have. You can then re-distribute workloads or provide additional support where required to prevent employees from working extra hours and exhausting themselves.

Support health and wellbeing at work

It’s more important than ever before to support health and wellbeing at work, and ideally, you should have policies in place to create a culture where employees feel comfortable asking for help if they need it. There are lots of ways you can promote health and wellbeing too, such as; renting a serviced office with an on-site gym, encouraging employees to use a breakout space during the working day and investing in ergonomic furniture.

If your employees have doctors appointments or other health-related appointments, you should allow them to go to these during working hours too. This can help to prevent additional stress and encourage employees to take better care of their physical and mental health. Of course, another benefit of having a serviced office is getting to see your employees in person on a regular basis so you can keep a close eye on them.

Looking for a new serviced office in the capital?

Hopefully, the tips above will help you to improve the work-life balance for your employees and this can, in turn, benefit the future success of your organisation. If you’re looking for a serviced office in London with a short-term lease that can also be customised to suit your needs, be sure to explore the One Avenue website. We have a portfolio of commercial properties throughout the capital in areas such as Aldgate, Southwark and Farringdon and our managed offices are a brilliant alternative to traditional office space.

All of our private offices are fully furnished and fully equipped with everything you need to operate your business, and we pride ourselves on providing outstanding hospitality to business owners, their employees and their clients. Our serviced offices really are a breath of fresh air and we have already helped hundreds of businesses find their perfect home, so let us help you find yours. If you have any questions about renting one of our London offices, feel free to contact us today.