Mark Lyttleton is an experienced angel investor with a stake in over 30 businesses. Mr Lyttleton focuses on early stage businesses that aim to have a positive planetary impact, such as Skoot, C-Cell, Maanch, OHM Energie and Clim8. In addition to providing funding and strategic support, he also provides entrepreneurs with personal advice, helping them to manage the many pressures involved in establishing a new business.
This article will take a look at the importance of achieving a healthy work-life balance and how, in an age where teleworking is becoming increasingly prevalent, employees need to work smarter rather than just harder to benefit both themselves and the businesses they work for.
According to an Insider report, a leaked email from Elon Musk revealing his ‘antiquated views’ on remote working threatened to ‘rob Tesla of top talent’. In contrast, an increasing number of businesses are coming around to the idea of allowing employees to work from home, with 37% of Americans spending at least some of the week working remotely, according to a recent Gallup poll. You can learn how the pandemic triggered a global transition to teleworking on an unprecedented scale by viewing the attached PDF.
In addition to being popular with staff, a growing body of evidence suggests that there are benefits for employers too, with a recent study suggesting embracing remote working practices can increase staff productivity by up to 30%. The embedded infographic identifies the main advantages of remote working from the perspective of both the employer and employee.
Although the ability to work from home remains one of the most popular employee perks, many remote workers are discovering that, in reality, working from home is far from a silver bullet in terms of achieving a healthy work-life balance. Contrary to the image of teleworkers slacking around the house, they often work longer hours than their in-office colleagues, with research suggesting that remote staff work 50-75 hours per week, averaging consistently longer days.
While the lack of commute, increased freedom and reduction of in-office interruptions would seem conducive to a better work-life balance, many workers have discovered that this simply is not the case, with just 24% of telecommuters rating their work-life balance as very good, compared with 38% of in-office workers.
Tactics remote workers can take to improve the balance include:
- Planning and prioritising
- Eliminating distractions
- Setting stop times
- Starting a hobby
- Taking breaks
- Exercising regularly
You can learn how businesses can help to ensure that staff achieve a healthy work-life balance by viewing the embedded video.