Gen-Z Employee Shares 3 Clever Tips To Help Workers 'Survive' A 9-To-5 Job
You should never let work become your entire identity.
adriaticfoto / Shutterstock For people who work over 40 hours a week, finding that balance between your work life and personal life can be quite hard. However, in a TikTok video, a content creator and Gen-Zer named Elsa revealed some helpful hacks that workers can use to make sure they aren't unnecessarily suffering at their 9-to-5 jobs.
She shared three clever tips to help workers 'survive' their everyday jobs.
"If you're working 40+ hours a week, or working full-time, then in my opinion, there is no such thing as a work-life balance," Elsa began in her video.
She explained that for most people, it can be hard to manage, but especially for people like herself, who also do content creation on the side, finding time to juggle all of these jobs is often difficult to do.
In an effort to find a solution, Elsa revealed the three tips that we should all be incorporating into our daily work lives if we want to keep ourselves sane during the week.
1. Have a work phone that is completely separate from your personal phone.
"Number one, delete Teams, Slack, and emails off of your personal phone. If you need to access them outside of working hours then your company should have no problem in providing you with a work phone to do so," Elsa said.
Photo: Matteo Badini from Studio Italy / Canva Pro
She acknowledged that we often don't notice the damage we are doing to our mental well-being by still having one foot at work, even when we're supposed to be off and enjoying our free time. At the end of the day, anything work-related shouldn't be checked with the same fervor as we do our social media accounts, as it's easy for our entire identities to suddenly become all work and no fun.
"I am not a CEO and I don't have shares in my company. So I have no business to be updated constantly or checking in on this project and that project," she continued.
2. Only work during your designated hours.
"Number two is to start on time and leave on time. Your work is going to be there tomorrow. The time we have outside of work is minimal so it should be spent on you."
Elsa explained that there is never a price on time, and that's why she turns down overtime and refuses to stay beyond five o'clock. It's important that we have a couple of hours at the end of the day to unwind, and there is no reason that we need to be working until the last possible second before bed.
3. Never eat lunch at your desk.
"Number three is making sure you're taking your lunch break away from your desk," Elsa said. "Just because everyone is eating around you at their desks doesn't mean to say that you have to."
She pointed out that lunch breaks are not paid for and therefore it shouldn't be expected that we need to stay chained to our desks and eat. It can also be a good way to break up your day get some fresh air, and physically walk away from your computer so that you don't feel inclined to work.
Having a work-life balance is extremely important and has noticeable benefits.
Being able to have a flexible work environment and work-life balance is incredibly important when it comes to job satisfaction. It helps reduce the effects of burnout and stress, which, if left unattended, can drastically affect your physical and mental health.
According to data from the Forbes Health-Ipsos Monthly Health Tracker, which polled 1,120 U.S. adults, 90% of employed respondents said work-life balance is an important aspect of their job. Only slightly more (91%) chose "financial stability," while 90% said "consistent pay" was an important aspect of their work.
More respondents noted work-life balance as an important aspect of their job than consistent hours (88%), an easy commute (86%), flexibility in when you work (82%), flexibility in where you work (80%), a path for promotion and increased responsibilities (75%) and the ability to network and collaborate with co-workers (74%).
There should be no reason to let our jobs become our entire lives and identity. By setting clear boundaries, employees can easily reclaim their free time and find enjoyment and relaxation outside of a fast-paced work environment.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.