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Do
you find it hard to switch off from work?
Are
you counting spreadsheets instead of sheep? Still logged on during
your lunch break?
If
your work/life balance leaves a little to be desired, you're not
alone.
Britain
boasts the longest working hours in Europe, something which may
not only be affecting the health of the workforce but also, surprisingly,
economic output.
Performance
A recent
survey carried out by the Department of Trade and Industry and Men's
Health magazine showed that 71% of men believed their failure to
strike a balance between life and job was affecting their performance
at work.
Gloucestershire-based
Tracy Meachin-Adams is managing director of Dynamic Solutions, which
provides training to companies and individuals to help them work
more effectively.
"You
have to create a work/life balance, it doesn't naturally come, I
know that from personal experience," she said.
"I
was very stressed, I was very unhealthy.
"When
I wasn't working I was absolutely shattered. You've got to draw
the line in the sand."
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| Tracy
Meachin-Adams |
Cultural
Factor
Part
of her work is helping people to find this balance.
"It's
become a cultural thing that people think you have to stay at work
as long as possible, you've got to be seen to be there longer.
"But
often these people are not as working as effectively as they could
be because they are operating at quite a stressed level."
 I was very stressed, I was very unhealthy.
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| Tracy
Meachin-Adams |
She
recognised two simple steps which could help people towards improving
their quality of life.
"Talk
about it. Even if it's just to your mates, this acknowledges the
situation and that will encourage you to do something about it."
Regular
exercise is an effective means helping to deal with the stress of
a hectic lifestyle.
"I
was a member of a gym that I never went to, so I spent a little
more and got myself a personal trainer.
"It
was the best present I ever gave myself - I have more stamina, sleep
better, am less stressed and have lost weight."
Experiment
In
2001 The Money Programme conducted an experiment where they forced
the staff of a Devon-based crystal factory to work only within their
set hours for a week.
Speaking
to ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ News afterwards, warehouse manager Mark Jordan said: "It's
made me sit back and realise that there is more to life."
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Working
too hard? You're not alone, it seems. Britons put in longer hours
than any other nation in Europe. Find out how to improve your work/life
balance... 
