Work-Life Balance

The importance of work-life balance is increasing. Today, one personal hour is more valuable than a decade ago. Operational-work life balance measures will be aimed at facilitating professional careers and honouring private needs. In future, the adaptation of integrated work-life balance concepts are likely to be accepted as the norm by Digital Aborigines / Natives and accepted positively by older generations.

• Applications to improve work-life balance will be accepted as the norm by Digital Aborigines / Natives and are likely to be accepted with enthusiasm by other generations such as Millennials, Prime Busters and Back-End Baby Boomers.

• Integrated work-life balance concepts include working time models, adapted work organisation, flexible workplaces and more.

• Rather than climbing the corporate ladder as fast as possible, people are shifting their focus to recognising and expanding one’s potential.

The importance of work-life balance is increasing. Today, one personal hour is more valuable than a decade ago

Integrating quality into every aspect of life
In the context of a 24/7 society and a dynamically changing working and living environment, finding a new, intelligent balance between work and private life will be one of the major challenges of the 21st century.

Operational work-life balance measures will be aimed at facilitating successful professional careers while honouring private, social, cultural and health needs. Integrated work-life balance concepts include specifically configured working time models, adapted work organisation, flexible workplaces, management directives and other supportive health services for employees.

Smart work-life balance concepts should be understood as a critical issue, affecting our society and economy. A well thought-out balance between the private and professional life of active citizens is not only beneficial for the individual, but also for the companies employing them, and for society as a whole. As the members of communities move more and more to the rhythm of their own agendas and work-life schedules, traditional family ties dissolve into a loosely patch-worked togetherness. People no longer derive their happiness from the core family but from a broader social environment, and from the activities they perform within their community.

Just as the distinction between inner and outer social circles slowly fade, so do the borders between work and life gradually crumble and make way for a new perception of work/life and work/hobby. At its core is a multi-faceted lifestyle, which is fed by the many passions of an individual and their experiences and networks. Rather than climbing the corporate ladder as fast as possible, people are shifting their focus to recognising and expanding one’s potential.

Championing ‘me-time’ as a way to reclaim a better work-life balance
In April 2015, UK high-end department store Selfridges launched the “Work It!” campaign, focusing on the changing work landscape and the decline of the typical 9-5 office. In the store’s beauty hall, consumers could attend Express Beauty Experiences where they could learn 15-minute beauty regimes. Meanwhile in other pop-up spaces, visitors could attend workshops to learn basic DIY skills or take part in fast-paced yoga sessions. Selfridges is responding, in part it says, to the fact that the employment rate in the UK is at its highest level since 1971. With work being such a huge part of people’s daily concerns, it is time, more than ever, to look at some of the trends that are reshaping both the workplace and the retail space and champion ‘me-time’ as a way to reclaim a better work-life balance.

Generation Reactions:

  • For Digital Aboriginals, these applications are not relevant. However, as they grow up, they will easily consider them as the normal state of being.
  • Millennials are the current champions of the work-life balance – shaping their lifestyles and work around each other.
  • Prime Busters are likely to respond with enthusiasm: since they are time-starved and working harder than ever, their agendas are often challenged by traffic congestion.
  • Back-End BabyBoomers are beginning to put more focus on an optimal divide between controlling their career (entering the last stage before retirement), controlling their physical abilities and energy levels, and the upcoming drive to invest more time in personal relations and self-actualisation.

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