The life of a busy professional is an endless series of urgent projects and deadlines. With the demands that our roles impose on us, it is very easy to lose sight of basic personal requirements,such as eating properly, at the right time, and getting sufficient sleep.

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The Need For A Work-Life Balance

As a busy executive, you tend to give priority to work, whereas eating, sleeping and leisure take a backseat. For those that have a family, the situation on our health and nutrition worsens as we struggle to find time to also prioritize our loved ones.

This lifestyle is bound to take a toll on your health, both physical and mental, and will result in loss of energy, making you inefficient in your work. Creating a work-life balance will help to increase your energy and efficiency at work, as well as improve your physical, mental and spiritual condition. In a world where 94% of working professionals admitted they worked over 50 hours per week, and almost half were found to be doing over 65 hours per week, the need for work-life balance is more important now than ever. In simple terms, it means striking a balance between work and lifestyle.

Below are a few simple techniques to adopt in order to achieve a healthier work-life balance:

• Don’t be a perfectionist.

• Pull out the plug, occasionally– avoid using your communication devices at the dining table.

• Allocate time in the week to exercise and meditate.

• Avoid time-wasting activities and people you don’t care for.

• Be prepared to make nutritional changes in your lifestyle.

• Learn the art of delegating and outsourcing.

• When it’s too much, walk away: whatever the issue, however critical it may first appear, it will still be there for you when you get back after an hour, or the next day.

How To Stay Energized As An Overworked, Busy Professional

If you feel that you have lost your spark, and you find it difficult to go on with your daily routine, you may be headed for “executive burnout”, defined as “a total loss of energy and interest and an inability to function effectively, experienced by some executives as a result of excessive demands upon their resources or chronic overwork”.


Try out these simple steps to restore your vigor and get back your energy:

• Take care of your body - you only have one! Eat well and try to get to bed early a few nights a week.

• Think positive. Negative thoughts create negative energy, and drag you down further.

• Associate with people who support you; create a support system.

• Allocate time in your calendar for leisure.

• Give your brain a rest by taking breaks from work regularly.

• Allow yourself some time out (do something crazy to let off steam!).

• Donate some of your time to someone else, such as reading your child a story or walking the family dog.

Food-Life Balance

The food we eat greatly impacts our health and fitness. Food packed with fiber, vitamins and minerals, such as fruit and vegetables will help to restore energy and enable you to be active. Food is the fuel that creates energy for your body, but as a busy professional, you need to enforce some food-life balance. When we are told to “eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper”, this may not apply to everyone’s situation. We are all unique and, depending on job function, physical activity levels, height and weight, some may need to tweak the amount they eat at certain times of the day.

Here are a few tips for how to create some food-life balance in the life of the busy executive:

• Practice self-discipline in eating healthy food, and reward yourself for your efforts!

• Instead of reducing the quantity of food, replace it with an equal quantity of fiber-rich foods, such as salads or fresh fruit.

• Observe mealtimes whilst also observing your hunger and fullness cues. Mindful eating is very powerful.

• Monitor the portions for each meal and use a smaller plate.

• Eat slowly, chew your food thoroughly, and enjoy each morsel.

Feeling energized as an executive is key to performing well at work, and in your personal life. To reach your potential, however, take some time to understand work-life balance and food-life balance, and how you can apply this to your lifestyle for better output.