Work-Life Balance and the Pursuit of Happiness

Work-Life balance is something that is mentioned frequently, and therefore has lost a lot of its meaning. Instead, it’s turned into a buzzword that a lot of people talk about, but don’t pursue. The average person spends roughly 90,360 hours of their life working. This is based on a 40-hour work week.

With people working more and more, we believe it’s more important now than ever, to pursue a good Work-Life balance.

With over 80% of the people on LinkedIn either not enjoying or hating their jobs, it would be ideal to be able to find work that you enjoy. To be one of those people that say, “if you love what you do, then you never work a day in your life.” There are plenty of those people out there, and that is definitely something that all of us should strive for. We should all try to find work that is rewarding. However, we also must understand that there are certain circumstances that can make this very difficult. That is why we must develop a plan to integrate a Work-Life balance into everyday living.

What is Work-Life balance?

Work-Life balance can have a lot of different meanings. IDEALLY, it means having a job you love, and having enough free time outside of work to do all the things you love, like spending time outside, enjoying your family, traveling, etc. REALISTICALLY, it means being able to leave work at work, and enjoy the time off work that you have with your family and friends.

It means, FINDING the time to spend with family, FINDING the time to Get Outside, FINDING the time to pursue your passions, and FINDING YOUR HAPPY.

There are 168 hours in a week. You spend roughly 1/3 of them sleeping, or roughly 56 hours. On average, you spend 40 of them working. And that’s not counting the time spend getting ready for work, driving to work, making meals, etc. Best case scenario, you’re left with 72 hours to FIND BALANCE in your life. 72 hours to spend with family, to Get Outside, and to pursue your passions. It can be easy to fall into the Weekend Warrior Trap, of moving through the week in a fog, trying to make it to another weekend. Instead, find time throughout the week, to do the things that make you HAPPY. There are 32 waking hours on the weekend. Which means that there are 40 hours during the week available for FINDING YOUR HAPPY.

Tips to Find Work-Life Balance

• Eat lunch outside
• When you get off work, put down the phone and spend time with your family, do things you enjoy, or pursue your passions
• Take time every day to Get Outside, even if it is just for a walk or a bike ride
• Spend less time watching TV and more time actively engaged with those around you
• Take advantage of the weekends and Get Outside, rather than spending them cooped up inside
• Take that road trip you’ve been talking about forever, or go on that big hike you’ve been planning
• Find a new passion, it can be outdoor related or not, but find something that makes you HAPPY

There are many small things you can do throughout the week to incorporate a better Work-Life balance into your everyday life. The important thing to remember, is that there is the time, you just need to FIND it. The weekend represents only 28% of your week… Don’t isolate your HAPPY to your weekends, FIND YOUR HAPPY throughout the week as well.

Work-Life balance has lost a lot of its meaning, and we want to change that. We want people to discover what Work-Life balance means to them, and actively pursue it. Every situation is different, but there is always time to FIND YOUR HAPPY.

The Happy Clothing Company

The Happy Clothing Company is a nature-inspired clothing brand, with a mission to make the world a HAPPY place. We hope that we have inspired you to FIND HAPPY in your life. Whatever that means to you. For us, it starts with Getting Outside.

Do More. Be Happy.

Note: There are always things that you can find about your job or work that you enjoy and appreciate. Find them and focus on them, because 40 hours a week is still too much time spent being unhappy. If you discover the little things about your job that do bring you satisfaction, it will make your work a lot more enjoyable.