Content Index
Introduction
As the norms and parameters of the workplace continue to shift as a result of more people working from home, the rise in digital nomad and remote work opportunities became more prevalent. However, working from home has made the boundaries between work, relaxation and family life blurred, as it became challenging to compartmentalise these various roles. This week’s blog post will explore what is meant by the term work-life balance, and will outline various ways in which this can be accomplished. There will also be a discussion of the ways that working remotely in beautiful natural surroundings like those found in Montserrat can actually enhance this elusive balance.
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Defining work-life balance
Work-life balance can be defined as the state of equilibrium where a person can equally prioritize the demands of one’s career and the demands of one’s personal life. It is often the case that our professional ambitions can overshadow many other aspects of our lives, including self-care. However, this can have lasting negative effects on one’s emotional, physical, and mental well-being. It is important to remember that, while it may seem counter-intuitive, taking time to slow down and look after yourself can actually increase productivity.
This more tranquil pace of life is one of the best things about choosing to work remotely from the Caribbean island of Montserrat, and this has been highlighted by previous participants of the Remote Worker Program, who have unanimously agreed that one of the best aspects of living here was the chance to embrace an improved work-life balance, which ultimately led to increased levels of productivity.
Prioritizing: How to achieve work-life balance
Focus on your health
Making a conscious effort to focus on your health will not only benefit you, but will also benefit your family, as you will be more pleasant to interact with. This will in turn create a closer family unit. One of the easiest ways to focus on a healthy lifestyle is to incorporate exercise into your daily routine. The lush and verdant Caribbean landscape of Montserrat provides plenty of activities to choose from to achieve this goal, such as hiking, scuba diving, and picnics on the beach. Many of these outings are educational as well as fun, for example, visiting the former capital of Plymouth, known as the Caribbean’s own Pompeii.
Take time to enjoy the presence of family and friends
Along with prioritizing your health, it is important to nurture friendships and have fun times with family. When working remotely or as a digital nomad, it is therefore a positive step to get to know the members of your community and make new friends. Montserrat has a warm and welcoming culture, and prides itself on making everyone feel at home. Building a sense of community also provides remote workers and digital nomads with an enhanced awareness of social and cultural characteristics of the place that they have come to call home, and fosters meaningful and long-lasting connections.
Enjoying time with family is easy to do in Montserrat, where a variety of annual festivals provide the opportunity to create a cornucopia of memories and entertaining stories! Taking deliberate action to plan and create calendars for outings and events,whether alone or as a family, will have a lasting and beneficial effect on the creation of work-life balance.
Set definitive work hours and maintain boundaries:
An imbalance between life and work can lead to burnout, even in the most beautiful of surroundings. One of the ways to avoid this is to set a schedule to establish a routine, and assign specific hours during the day for work. It is also a good idea to mentally “clock out” once the working day is done, and avoid thinking about upcoming tasks and work-related projects. Let friends, family and colleagues know about these boundaries so that they will be able to manage their expectations.
Conclusion
Making the decision to work remotely means that the workforce of today is not constrained by physical borders, and can continue to advance in their chosen careers irrespective of where in the world they choose to live. However, in the midst of this freedom, it is more important than ever to nurture a healthy and sustainable work-life balance.