5 answers
Julia
Student
Elk River, Minnesota
5
Questions
Asked
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What is the best way to manage your career with our hobbies and your personal life?
I have this fear that when I get a job it will take up all my time and I will never be able to pursue different hobbies or go any where or see anybody because I will always be at work.
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5 answers
Lucy Iwuagwu
Nursing and midwifery student
44
Answers
Lilongwe, Central Region, Malawi
Updated
Lucy’s Answer
Balancing a career with hobbies and personal life can be challenging, but it’s achievable with intentional planning. The key is to set boundaries, prioritize, and allocate time for each aspect of your life. Try scheduling non-work activities just like you would meetings, even if it’s just a small block of time each day. Choose a job that aligns with your values and allows some flexibility, and remember it’s okay to say no to extra commitments if it disrupts your personal life. Maintaining balance is a continuous process, so regularly reassess your priorities to stay fulfilled both professionally and personally.
I appreciate this, thank you for the advice.
Julia
Mary Marrs
Social Work
8
Answers
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Mary’s Answer
Julia
Great question.
This is where you need to learn time management and setting self-care and work/life balance skills.
First - Time management
Set your schedule at work to ensure that you are focused on the tasks that are required of you so that you are able to get everything done within the 8 hours per day that your employer expects of you. Don't wait until the end of the day to start projects, work hard earlier in the day so if something comes up, you have the day to get assistance from coworkers or from your supervisor. Use your morning break and your afternoon break for a quick walk or a breath of fresh air to clear your brain so you come back fresh and ready to tackle another couple of hours of work. Your lunch hour should be away from the office, if possible to let you relax, revitalize and find yourself again. But always put in your time, let your boss see you putting in your time and never slack. Learn how to schedule your time, keep to your schedule if possible and be flexible enough to juggle emergencies by moving tasks to another time slot so they will still get done. It all will work, just keep focused.
Second - Self Care
Breath, exercise, eat healthy, and find joy in your personal life and in your career. Have those hobbies that you mentioned, that make your happy. Don't let them take over your life (then they are obsessions, not hobbies), but enjoy.
Third - Life/Work Balance
Schedule time off from for a week every six months or so, for vacation either to stay home and relax or to go somewhere. Don't use up your vacation hours needlessly, but save them up to take quality time off, as sometimes it takes a day or two to decompress from the job before the vacation really begins. Don't bring your work home with you, if you can help it. Have two separate lives, one at work and one at home and keep it that way. Don't do work work at home and don't do home things at your work. Your boss won't like and your partner won't either. And you will never have peace in either place, the lines will blur and you will be working all the time. Both places are important, but they are separate.
Remember, you take care of yourself first, but take your responsibilities to your boss and to your homelife serious as well. It can take a little juggling, but when you get into the rhythm of it, it works really well.
Great question.
This is where you need to learn time management and setting self-care and work/life balance skills.
First - Time management
Set your schedule at work to ensure that you are focused on the tasks that are required of you so that you are able to get everything done within the 8 hours per day that your employer expects of you. Don't wait until the end of the day to start projects, work hard earlier in the day so if something comes up, you have the day to get assistance from coworkers or from your supervisor. Use your morning break and your afternoon break for a quick walk or a breath of fresh air to clear your brain so you come back fresh and ready to tackle another couple of hours of work. Your lunch hour should be away from the office, if possible to let you relax, revitalize and find yourself again. But always put in your time, let your boss see you putting in your time and never slack. Learn how to schedule your time, keep to your schedule if possible and be flexible enough to juggle emergencies by moving tasks to another time slot so they will still get done. It all will work, just keep focused.
Second - Self Care
Breath, exercise, eat healthy, and find joy in your personal life and in your career. Have those hobbies that you mentioned, that make your happy. Don't let them take over your life (then they are obsessions, not hobbies), but enjoy.
Third - Life/Work Balance
Schedule time off from for a week every six months or so, for vacation either to stay home and relax or to go somewhere. Don't use up your vacation hours needlessly, but save them up to take quality time off, as sometimes it takes a day or two to decompress from the job before the vacation really begins. Don't bring your work home with you, if you can help it. Have two separate lives, one at work and one at home and keep it that way. Don't do work work at home and don't do home things at your work. Your boss won't like and your partner won't either. And you will never have peace in either place, the lines will blur and you will be working all the time. Both places are important, but they are separate.
Remember, you take care of yourself first, but take your responsibilities to your boss and to your homelife serious as well. It can take a little juggling, but when you get into the rhythm of it, it works really well.
Thank you so much!
Julia
Rebecca Tang
Banking
1858
Answers
Hong Kong
Updated
Rebecca’s Answer
Thank you for your question. It is a very good question. Have you considered to work on something you have interest?
Below are my suggestions:
1. Thinkk about what you have interest, eg your hobbies, favourite subjects, etc and identify the related careers
Eg if you like music, would you like to be a musician, singer, musical artist, music composer, music producer, etc
If you have interest in maths, would you like to be an accountant, engineer, banker, financial analyst, maths teacher, etc
2. Find out more on these careers and determine what you have interest
3. Speak to someone who are working in these careers. Seek guidance from your mentor, school career counselor, your parents, etc
4. Shortlist 1-2 careers you would like to pursue
5. Explore the entry criteria of relevant subjects in colleges
In terms of work life balance, you can find a time management tool, eg ms outlook, Google Calendar, your phone, etc. to help you to manage your time better.
Hope this helps! Good luck!
May Almighty God bless you!
Below are my suggestions:
1. Thinkk about what you have interest, eg your hobbies, favourite subjects, etc and identify the related careers
Eg if you like music, would you like to be a musician, singer, musical artist, music composer, music producer, etc
If you have interest in maths, would you like to be an accountant, engineer, banker, financial analyst, maths teacher, etc
2. Find out more on these careers and determine what you have interest
3. Speak to someone who are working in these careers. Seek guidance from your mentor, school career counselor, your parents, etc
4. Shortlist 1-2 careers you would like to pursue
5. Explore the entry criteria of relevant subjects in colleges
In terms of work life balance, you can find a time management tool, eg ms outlook, Google Calendar, your phone, etc. to help you to manage your time better.
Hope this helps! Good luck!
May Almighty God bless you!
Thank you so much!
Julia
Morris Burns
12
Answers
Updated
Morris’s Answer
This is an excellent point. Starting early in your career to establish a balanced lifestyle is key. Make it a point to arrange your hobbies around your work schedule. Don't hesitate to use wellness and vacation time to indulge in your hobbies and other interests, instead of letting some of that precious time go to waste, which is a common occurrence.
Remember, many employers have a limit on the amount of vacation time you can carry over, so it's wise to plan days specifically dedicated to immersing yourself in your hobbies.
If you build your life solely around your career from the get-go, you're likely to face a challenging journey for a considerable period. So, make sure to prioritize balance from the start.
As soon as you accept a position while currently in a position, If there's work calendars available, planet long weekends by scheduling off a Monday and Friday or time in the middle of the week proactively and plan what hobbies are activities you would like to venture into on those days. If you plan reactively, then you'll always be behind and work which will always make you behind your hobbies.
Stay active on websites like Eventbrite and find events that compliment the hobbies and personal goals you have so you start to build a community around those things that will help keep you accountable.
Remember, many employers have a limit on the amount of vacation time you can carry over, so it's wise to plan days specifically dedicated to immersing yourself in your hobbies.
If you build your life solely around your career from the get-go, you're likely to face a challenging journey for a considerable period. So, make sure to prioritize balance from the start.
Morris recommends the following next steps:
Thanks for the help.
Julia
Jason White
Lead Product Manager- Network Security
80
Answers
Dallas, Texas
Updated
Jason’s Answer
Hey Julia,
This is a great question to have! especially so early. This is the time to be researching different careers and getting a feel for what the balance of work and personal looks like. In my opinion it's important to seek out what you want from the start. This means that you have to be very aware different industries and companies have different benefits that might make it easier or harder to manage your work and personal lives. An industry like healthcare often you are on the clock while you are in the building and once you leave you are away from most anything work related. While some office jobs sometimes you are spending more time working on things after you have left the office. Either can be a great work life balance if you have personal boundaries and prioritize what you enjoy doing it will just look different from person to person. I'll also add that some companies have policies and benefits that make it easier (or harder) to strike that balance. Now is the time to do the research before you go to college and get a firm understanding of what types of commitments are expected in different career fields.
This is a great question to have! especially so early. This is the time to be researching different careers and getting a feel for what the balance of work and personal looks like. In my opinion it's important to seek out what you want from the start. This means that you have to be very aware different industries and companies have different benefits that might make it easier or harder to manage your work and personal lives. An industry like healthcare often you are on the clock while you are in the building and once you leave you are away from most anything work related. While some office jobs sometimes you are spending more time working on things after you have left the office. Either can be a great work life balance if you have personal boundaries and prioritize what you enjoy doing it will just look different from person to person. I'll also add that some companies have policies and benefits that make it easier (or harder) to strike that balance. Now is the time to do the research before you go to college and get a firm understanding of what types of commitments are expected in different career fields.
Thank you for taking the time to help.
Julia