12 March 2010 by Guest
Winweb chief
executive Stefan Töpfer asks whether work-life balance is as
important as we make it out to be.
The term "work-life balance" has come to be a bit of a buzz
phrase of late but what do we actually mean by it? And why is it so
important?
Talking about a work-life balance has come to symbolize a problem
many of us face; increasing work pressures mean we neglect our
families, friends and hobbies as they pale in to insignificance
with the pressures put upon us to climb the corporate ladder.
I have been there. I worked in an office, not seeing enough of my
children and spending a considerable amount of my precious time
commuting. When I left the world of the office to focus on my
company, WinWeb, in 1999 I switched to working from home, enabling
me to see more of my son and even pick him up from school.
Despite building a growing company my work-life balance was better
than ever. But did only my family reap this benefit?
It is my belief that increasing work pressures have led to
detrimental trends being established within society over the last
150 years. Many problems within our social fabric can be
attributed to too much focus being placed on slogging on the
working treadmill and our eyes being diverted away from our health,
relationships and families.
Working from home when building a business allows people to work
from anywhere, and can help build a sense of local community that
many of our small towns and villages now lack. Most members of my
team work from
home and during their lunch hour regularly visit the local
coffee shop, bakery or corner shop, building a sense of community
around them that would be lacking if they traveled to an office in
a city each day.
The implications of working flexibly, either for yourself or
within an organisation, cannot be over looked when considering both
mental and physical health. Being given a certain level of autonomy
over the completion of tasks and being able to fit around the needs
of your family reduces stress, anxiety and makes employees happier.
And in my mind a happy employee is a productive employee!
With this in mind it is no wonder that now there is an
ever-increasing and encouraging trend of people breaking out of the
9-5 stereotype and instead starting their own small businesses.
Starting a business is hard work, I know that as well as anyone,
but the flexibility it brings can suit a family's needs better than
many roles within a corporate environment.
Technological developments have meant that virtually anyone,
anywhere, with an idea, drive and passion can start a small
business. Determination to succeed means that this can be achieved
whether you work 9-5 or 5-9! In my experience more demands are
actively pursued within a home working or small office environment
to maximize financial results while maintaining the optimum
work-life balance.
So is work-life balance an unobtainable dream? Is it a buzz phrase
that will just disappear? I don't think so, and I certainly hope
not. In my mind the definition of a work-life balance is different
for us all. But I know that by finding your own satisfactory
work-life balance you could not only increase your happiness, but
also your productivity.