Work-Life Balance Tips for New Yorkers

By Jane Katz | November 5, 2019

Ah, the infamous word: balance. Does work-life balance exist? My take is that in NYC, probably not. We New Yorkers are always on the go go go. Constantly hunting for everything from the next job opportunity to the next best restaurant.

Just because we don’t have it, doesn’t mean we can’t strive for it. Below are three suggestions to implement in your daily life that may help you have more control between work and home life.

Implement work-free hours.

This means: no phone, no e-mail, no texts with your boss. I know that in today’s age of constant connectivity, this may seem impossible, but truly, it’s not. Even two hours completely away from your phone can do wonders for your brain, which needs a break!

Constantly communicating, scrolling, responding and being alert is not what our minds are biologically programmed to do, so give it a rest. I recommend setting this policy in place during the evening and early morning hours.

For example, disconnect between the hours of 9PM and 7:30AM. And yes, I purposely set the hours to be a little before bedtime and after your morning wakeup. Reaching for your phone the second you wake up is a habit that can be left behind.

Woman Sitting on Bench with Dog Overlooking Brooklyn

Photo by pxoxo

Establish little rituals during the workday that make you smile.

A little piece of chocolate at 3PM. A walk around the block before lunch. A phone call to your loved one on your commute home. Whatever it is that brings you joy, find a way to incorporate it into your everyday. I find that doing something nice for myself makes the workday rather lovely.

Do the most important tasks of your day first, not last.

I know this one is tough, since it is our human nature to procrastinate. However, the longer you wait to do that dreaded thing, the less likely the chances of it happening today. First thing in the morning, act…don’t react. I heard Dr.Oz say this on an interview about his morning routine.

It’s way better to send out everything you need to in the beginning of the day before you start responding to things from other people. It’s easier to respond when you’re already groggy from the day (aka at 3PM) than to charge yourself to do the challenging outreach. Not only will this help you feel more productive, but it will allow you to stress less when you haven’t ticked off every item on your to-do list, because the critical ones are likely taken care of.

What are your favorite tips and tricks for maintaining equilibrium between your personal life and your career?

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