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How To Find The Elusive Work Life Balance

Rollercoasters can be a lot of fun, but imagine if you were forced to ride one when you weren’t really in the mood for excitement.

You’d probably be more stressed than excited, but you’d tolerate it, dust yourself off and move on.

But what if someone forced you onto that rollercoaster again and again, never giving you time to prepare and never telling you how many times you’d have to go around the loop-de-loop before you were allowed to disembark.

Even a resilient lover of thrill rides would tire of that vicious cycle, becoming worn out, anxious, and just plain over it.

That’s where we’re at, folks. We’ve been riding the COVID rollercoaster for nearly two years. And even though New Zealand had a pretty decent break, we find ourselves thrust back onto the ride, whether we like it or not.

So, what can we do?

How To Find The Elusive Work Life Balance

Prioritising What’s Important

Uncertainty takes a toll on our ability to work, parent or even just do what needs to be done around the home. That’s why mental wellbeing is more essential now than ever – and finding work life balance plays a significant role in our mental health.

Let’s talk about why it’s so important to switch off from work and how to separate home and work life.

We’ll also share some valuable mental wellbeing resources to help you and your team survive the COVID rollercoaster together.

Climb aboard and buckle up!

Why Finding The Work Life Balance Is More Important Than Ever

If your resilience and tolerance are wearing thin (or long gone), it’s understandable. The uncertainty of being in and out of lockdown, working from home, parenting from home, and living under social restrictions is stressful for everyone.

Work life balance has been a hot topic for years, but in the current pandemic climate, it’s a lot more complicated than it once was.

The lines between work and home are becoming increasingly blurred. While that’s particularly true for those working from home, it’s still relevant for essential workers who need to leave the house.

Partners or flatmates may be working from home, changing the home environment completely, and if you have kids, the juggle struggle is real, regardless of whether you work from home or not.

On top of all this, we’re trying to cope with worries and fears about illness, sick friends and family, and an uncertain future – both personally and professionally.

That’s an awful lot to deal with.

The Mental Wellness Discussion

With everything that is currently going on, mental wellness has become a crucial conversation.

If we don’t prioritise work life balance and take care of our mental health, we’ll find it hard to cope with any aspect of life.

The ongoing stress can result in unproductivity, loss of motivation, depression, and anxiety. And if we don’t find ways to mitigate the demands of work and home, we’re likely to experience that stress physically, too, with fatigue, headaches, digestive issues, and long-term health issues.

Not only do we need to take responsibility for our own mental health, but we need to support those around us too – our friends, family, colleagues and employees.

It may have been said so much that it’s become something of a cheesy cliché, but we are all in this together!

How To Separate Home And Work When Working From Home

How’s the productivity going now that you’ve been working from home for a while? Should be a piece of cake, right? Do you have your routine sorted? Do you knock off on time every day? Are you more productive than ever?

If the answer is yes, then virtual high five for you – you’ve nailed the demands of WFH.

But for so many workers, the struggle continues. Working from home isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and it can be hard to separate home and work.

If that’s you, here are some tips to help you regain that work life balance.

Stick to a morning routine

Resist the temptation to get straight on the laptop to start work the minute you wake up. Try to stick to the same kind of routine you had before COVID. Maybe you’re a morning person and used to exercise and shower before heading to work. Or perhaps you grabbed a coffee at the gas station and sat in traffic every day.

Either way, create some kind of routine to separate your home life from your work life. Get up, get ready, walk around the block, then arrive in the “office” and get to work.

Create a dedicated workspace

If possible, devote an area of your home to your workspace. Resist working from the bed or couch – it’s too distracting (and horrendous for your back!). If you have a separate room to work in, fantastic! Set that area aside and only use it for work.

If not, make do with what you have, but make it your designated work area. You may have to work at the dining room table, but choose a special chair or cushion, and only use that for work and nothing else.

Leave the Office at the End of the Day

Create an end of work routine to separate your workday from home. Don’t sit and browse your laptop once you are finished. Instead, get up and leave – even if it’s just to walk around the garden!

Establish boundaries – and stick to them

Make sure you, your manager, your colleagues (or clients) are clear on your work hours. Agree that work emails or phone calls only happen between those times, and resist the temptation to fire off a “quick” email outside of those hours.

Don’t forget to set boundaries with your family or housemates too. Let them know that when you’re working, that’s work time, and you’re not available for chores or chats. The best way to get the time you need is to communicate that you need it.

Take breaks

Schedule a lunch break and stick to it. Don’t spend that lunch break on your computer – step away! Go outside and take some deep breaths, grab a book to read while you eat, or chat with the family. Take regular breaks away from your workspace during the day, too.

Ask your employer for support

If you’re struggling to cope, be open with your employer. The best organisations will have strategies to address health and wellness. Ask for resources to help you manage overwhelm.

Go easy on yourself

You know those people you see on social media who are nailing their careers, baking delicious meals, home schooling their kids and doing yoga every day? Forget about them.

Even if their posts accurately reflect their lives (and chances are, they don’t), you are not them. You don’t have to do everything perfectly. It’s ok just to cope. It’s ok if you’re not coping. Give yourself a break and focus on what you are achieving instead of what you’re not.

Take care of your physical health

Your physical health directly impacts your mental health, and vice versa. It’s important to prioritise habits and activities that improve both. That means finding time to exercise (even if it’s dancing around the house) and eat well.

Oh, and don’t forget to laugh! Find things that make you smile and forget about the rollercoaster for a while.

Health And Wellbeing Resources

Rather than you having to trawl the internet for resources that might be helpful, we have compiled a handy list:

Mentemia

App and Website – Tried and tested tools to help promote and manage well being. Free for general use, but with tailored options available to businesses.

Mental Health Foundation

Practical wellbeing tips and advice based on the Five Ways to Wellbeing.

Working Well Guide

Resources for workplace wellbeing.

Getting Through Together

A pool of resources, tips and inspirational stories focused on health and wellbeing during COVID-19.

Working Well

A guide to mental health in the workplace.

Staying on Track

A free e-therapy course teaching you practical coping strategies for the COVID rollercoaster.

Small Steps

Digitally-based tools to help you maintain mental wellness.

Whakatui Mai – The Wellbeing Sessions

Free virtual community events aimed at supporting well being in real-time.

A Mental Health Guide for New Zealand Leaders

Comprehensive document aimed at leaders and managers to help them support the mental wellbeing of their teams.

And, of course, if you are feeling stuck, overwhelmed or unsure of how you can support your team with creating a good work life balance, then get in touch with the Spice Gals today. We can help you create a plan that supports your team remotely or in-person.

What Is Performance Management and How Can You Do It Well?

Managing the performance of your employees is one of the most essential and delicate aspects of running a successful business.

It is a little bit like adding the spice to a curry. Get it right, and you have got the perfect dish to keep everyone satisfied and powered-up. Get it wrong, and you are going to have a lot of unhappy people looking for somewhere else to eat!

While many managers find the concept of performance management intimidating, it’s actually pretty straightforward. Being transparent, authentic, open and honest are the keys to success.

Let’s have a look at some of the key ingredients for effective performance management.

What Is Performance Management?

Firstly, let’s cover off the main question… what does effective performance management look like?

Many people make the mistake of assuming that performance management is the appraisal process. But it goes far deeper than that. In fact, effective performance management is actually about creating an environment in your workplace where your team are enabled to perform to the best of their abilities.

As you can imagine, a lot goes into creating that kind of environment. It is not something you can leave to happen on its own – to magically create a great environment without any input.

So, these are our best tips on how to create the kind of space that enables your team to perform to the best of their abilities… and to want to do it!

Clarity

Would you send an invite to a dinner party but fail to include the date, time, and location? Only if you didn’t want someone to show up, right? The same goes for managing your staff. Be clear on what they are expected to achieve, how they should best go about it, and give specific deadlines.

A clear job description will help set the initial guidelines. That needs to be backed up by creating the right expectations on both sides of the relationship. Once your people know what is expected of them, they can really shine. It might help to set KPIs or goals in line with their abilities so they always have a target to strive for.

Follow-up

The days of formal annual performance reviews are fading away. Modern, effective managers are all about regular check-ins. They don’t have to be formal, structured meetings all the time (though it does help to schedule some catch ups of this nature). The point is to meet on a regular basis. This coaching method lets you catch mistakes early on, identify if people are on the right track, and help them shift attention if necessary. It allows for on-the-spot, timely feedback, and saves everyone’s time in the long run.

Feedback

While we all prefer to avoid or delay uncomfortable situations, managers need to give feedback promptly. Don’t save up your input (whether positive or negative) for a formal review when it is no longer relevant. A good mentor and coach will make use of teaching moments, giving constructive feedback as and when needed. You will find employees appreciate honesty (when delivered in a helpful, appropriate way).

Managers should also be setting a good example by actively asking for feedback from their team.

Future-Focus

While not every discussion needs to be sunshine and rainbows, it is important to ensure feedback is focused on developing skills for the future, not dwelling on what has gone wrong in the past.

When things go well, you can talk about how to repeat and build on these successes.

When challenges arise, look at ways to avoid and improve on these in the future without placing blame. Perhaps the employee can be paired up with another team member, receive further training to upskill, or be given more resources in order to meet their future objectives.

Reward and Recognition

Perhaps the most crucial part of performance management is getting the reward and recognition part right. Your employees need to feel appreciated for the work they do. Sometimes, this can be as simple as a heartfelt, individualised thank you. Other times, it may need to be a bigger incentive.

Most importantly, ensure that your rewards are fair and effective. Keep in mind that this is not a “one-size-fits-all” process. Different things motivate different people. Expend some energy finding out what works best for every individual.

If you are looking to get some structure in place when it comes to performance management at your workplace, then we can certainly help you do that. Get in touch with us here at Spice HR to enable your team to perform at their very best.

Why You Need an Effective Training and Development Program

Is your idea of training and development sending your team on a once-a-year health and safety course?

Then we’ve got some news for you… You are doing your business and your team a huge disservice.

Training and development are buzzwords in the HR world for good reason. Regardless of the size of your organisation, investing in individuals is an investment in the success of your business.

A well thought out, consistent training and development strategy boosts staff morale and engagement, increases staff retention, skyrockets productivity and efficiency, and even helps your company’s future growth and success.

Yes, it really is that important! Let’s talk about why.

The Benefits of Training and Development

Increased Employee Satisfaction

Employees that feel inadequate, unsupported, or under-challenged can become bored and disengaged. In contrast, providing relevant training and development opportunities shows your staff that you value, appreciate, and support them. This provides increased job satisfaction, which results in increased loyalty and retention.

Improved Performance

Happy, engaged workers are more likely to go the extra mile for your business. And they will do it because they want to, not because they feel they have to. They will do their job more efficiently with fewer mistakes. This helps your business stay ahead of the game and there will be less of a requirement for intense supervision of your team. They will be able to take pride in operating autonomously.

Develop Future Leaders

Prepping your employees for future promotion can be priceless. It gives them something to strive for, ensuring they will always enjoy applying themselves to the job at hand. A solid development program includes strategic planning to fill potential skill gaps from within. Recruiting leadership roles internally puts you on the front foot. They already know and understand your business and have proven themselves. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that you can save time and money, and avoid the mistake of a costly bad hire.

Innovation and Creativity

Learning opens the mind and paves the way for innovative thinking. Just because something has always been done one way does not mean that it is the best way. Ongoing training and development creates opportunity for creativity, but also for innovation in your practices. This will help you to create a strong and dynamic organisation.

Attract Quality Employees

Job hunters are very savvy these days. They expect more than a steady pay packet. They want a great place to work. A business that invests in and cares about its employees will quickly gain a reputation as that great place to work. You will be able to attract top talent to enhance your team of go-getters.

How To Approach Training and Development in Your Business

There are some key things to remember when you are developing a training program for your workplace. Probably the most important thing is to not get caught up in the traditional definitions of training. Courses and formal training play an important role, but only as a small portion of an overall culture of day to day learning and mentoring.

The 70:20:10 rule is a popular and effective way of outlining the different aspects of employee development.

70 percent of the work happens on the job, as your employees learn by doing. Select projects and assign responsibilities that get people out of their comfort zone and challenge them to stretch their abilities.

20 percent of the time should include learning from mentors, who could be colleagues or managers. Rather than a formal development plan, this kind of training should be organic and encouraged to happen naturally in the workplace. Personalise development in response to skillsets, areas of interests, and different learning methods.

The last 10 percent is formal training, which could include digital courses, seminars, conferences, or additional certifications and qualifications. Don’t forget to focus on both hard and soft skills.

Today’s employees are looking for careers, not just jobs. Fulfilment, personal growth, and ongoing development are high on the list of priorities for top candidates. Taking the time to develop a culture that values professional and personal development will be reflected in the positive engagement of your team and the future success of your business.

If you are interested in developing an effective training and development plan at your workplace, then get in touch with us here at Spice HR. We can help you create an effective and practical plan that can upskill your team and benefit the entire business.