The secrets to maintaining a healthy work-life balance

Professionals must lead an active lifestyle with a proper work-life balance to reap rewards that life has to offer.

In today’s rapidly changing world, most professionals are struggling to strike a healthy balance between their work and personal lives. Distractions like social media, television, live streaming of 24 X 7 entertainment programs, and smartphone screen time have changed lifestyles. Though the importance of work-life balance is well known, many of us fail to accord priority to it. There is a lack of realisation that time management isn’t possible without your own energy management. All of us have only 24 hours a day. Some accomplish significantly more than others consistently day after day. Those who invest at least one hour a day in themselves, to recharge their energy levels, are able to cope well with today’s professional demands.

I recognized the importance of maintaining high energy levels early in my career by shouldering many responsibilities, travelling, adjusting to different time zones and climatic conditions, adapting to different types of food, etc. I further realised that it is equally important to build stamina as it impacts our job performance.

The London Business School runs a parallel wellness program during its famous Senior Executive Management programme. Basically, they train you to be a ” Corporate Athlete “. The external trainer, Jeff, recommends either swimming daily for 1 km, running 10 kms, or cycling for 30 kms non-stop! It looked impossible at the start. Many of us have a tendency to postpone many important initiatives because there is no urgency. However, I gradually started swimming after the programme, running after the age of 50, and cycling during the pandemic.

I ran my first half marathon in 2012. And later, I ran the Ultra Marathon in 2021 in virtual mode during the pandemic. Now every year I participate in 5-6 half marathons in different cities, depending on my business travel. This year, for the first time, I participated in a triathlon – a single race consisting of swimming, cycling, and long-distance running in that order. Even in my twenties, I could never have imagined that I could build such stamina and endurance.

Individual sports like swimming, running & cycling is best for busy professionals. You can pursue them as per your schedule. Stamina building has immensely helped me in my professional journey.

One more mistake many do is to stop physical activity after encountering some sickness and medical issues due to our sedentary and stressful lives. This not only aggravates the health situation but also severely impacts professional efficiency. I have witnessed many talented leaders losing steam midway through their careers due to such burnout.

I would like to share the real-life story of my friend Dhananjay Yellurkar. He started running marathons after emergency bypass surgery at 48 years of age. In the last 12 years, he has run the world’s 10 toughest marathons, including one in Antarctica at minus 30 degree centigrade. He achieved these goals while pursuing his high-profile career (read his memoir – Fuel for My Journey).

One more reason professionals postpone their journeys to strike a work life balance is the lack of training. Therefore, the best way to start is to join some groups. I adopted this strategy as my travel schedule didn’t permit formal training.

I have found that the professionals who are ensuring good work-life balance and striving to remain healthy are achieving overall well-being in addition to regular work attendance. Running a marathon is not just about physical fitness, but it’s also about developing the mental attitude and determination to accomplish goals.

Needless to say, marathoners will generally perform well in their work lives as well. This is because runners are very good at making detailed plans for training, nutrition, and rest. Similarly, they will likely turn out to be good planners and strategists at work because they have endured physical pain over long distances, and therefore working under pressure and for longer hours would not be a challenge to them. They are extremely motivated and self-driven.

Accomplishing tasks on time is extremely important in the corporate world. Because marathon runners accomplish their running milestones within the planned time limits, they will likely complete their work tasks before the deadline. Their mind is trained to make the best use of every minute. Normal human beings will often wonder what to do in the next 5-10 minutes, but an athlete will think about covering some distance in 10 minutes. More often than not, you will find them offering innovative solutions for everyday challenges. They will strive to do their best and keep adding value to themselves and the organization. Their positive mindsets are highly infectious and highly desirable.

Earlier, I never used to post my energy-boosting activities on social media. Only when I realised that many aren’t starting due to a lack of self-belief, that I started sharing my activities on social media since the past 3 years. Consequently, many started believing, “if he can do it, I too can succeed.” It’s a truly satisfying experience when I see that more and more people are not only improving their lifestyles & work-life balance, but also doing it far better than me. In conclusion, professionals must lead an active lifestyle with a proper work-life balance to reap rewards that life has to offer.

This article is authored by Anil Parab, L&T Whole-Time Director & Sr. EVP ( Heavy Engineering and L&T Valves), Member of L&T Board