Work-Life Balance

  1. The work-life balancing act - it's getting harder
  2. Work-life balance: Setting boundaries and limits
  3. How to leave work at work
  4. Even VCRs have a pause button
  5. Where's the pressure coming from?
  6. Are you a workaholic?
  7. Handling home chores
  8. More tips for handling home chores
  9. Free time survey says we prefer sleep over sex

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Free time survey says we prefer sleep over sex

A recent Ipsos-Reid survey revealed that a majority of Canadians prefer a good night's sleep to a good night of sex. The exact figures were 58% favouring sleep, 37% favouring sex. I'm now waiting for a survey to find out how many Canadians fall asleep during sex!

The other major findings showed that 46% of respondents felt they didn't have enough free time and 41% felt that they had less free time than five years ago.

People listed several negative effects of this lack of free time, especially stress, no time for family or friends and fatigue/exhaustion. Although none of this was a great surprise to me, it underlined yet again what's happening to us, both individually and collectively, in our increasingly downsized, fast-paced, dollar-driven society. It's another wake-up call that we're drifting into a very unhealthy lifestyle.

Why is this happening?

Here's my list of suspected causes for our lack of free time:

  1. Downsizing in the workplace. As companies cut their workforce, the survivors are doing more work - and with fewer resources to draw upon.
  2. Corporate culture. The emphasis is on servicing the customer. The credo is "Do whatever it takes" to give clients top quality service with 24/7 availability. The goal is no longer to "meet" client expectations but to "exceed" them.
  3. Guilt. A recent Maclean's magazine cover story on "Redesigning Work," noted that "48% of employees feel guilty when they leave on time" (not when they leave early, but when they leave on time)!
  4. The Tyranny of Technology. We were once told that technology would allow us to work fewer hours and free up more time for leisure. The reality is that these techno-marvels have become our masters rather than our servants. Some people see their mission in life as just being able to get through their email messages each day.
  5. Sleep Deprivation. We're a sleep-deprived society. So most of us are tired and, therefore, less efficient at work. As a result, we require longer hours to get our work done -- leaving less free time. This creates a vicious cycle because the things that we cut back on are the very things that would rejuvenate our energy (sleep, exercise, relaxation, recreation, and relationships).
  6. Longer Commuting Time. As our towns and suburbs get more crowded, roads are increasingly clogged with commuters. We're spending more of our time, energy and a lot of gas just getting to and from work each day.

What's the solution?

I think we need a three-pronged approach.

  1. Awareness.
    We need to start paying attention to what we're doing (to ourselves and each other) and what it's costing us. We've bought into the faster pace, longer days, and increased expectations at work. We're spending more of our lives in job-related activities. We're blanketing one another with faxes, voice mail, and email. And much of this is being done without planned intent or awareness.
  2. Choice.
    One way to regain control is to start making conscious choices about how we want to live our lives. I think a lot of our slide into a work-obsessed society has been reactive and unconscious. We need to choose to cut back our work hours. We should choose to limit our use of technology. For example, I have a car-phone, but I can never remember the number. I rarely use it--and only to call out. I don't carry a cell phone. I have no interest in being available anywhere at any time. We need to choose not to take work home. We need to choose to make time for our families and friends, to get more sleep, and to make time for ourselves.
  3. Permission.
    The third step is to give ourselves permission to make changes: permission to say "no," permission to say "enough," and permission to do something for ourselves every day. And we need to do these things without guilt.

The free time survey reminds us that we're sliding down a slippery slope. Work has always been a necessity of life. But I don't think it was ever intended to be a way of life. Let's all - individually and collectively - step back, assess our situation, make healthier choices and help each other to do the same. Let's create a positive cycle that will pay us back with time, energy - and maybe a bit more enthusiasm for sex!

All material copyrighted, David B. Posen M.D.