Do you ever worry that work interferes with the quality of your life, that success in the workplace is on your mind so much that you struggle to live in the moment, that you’re letting your life pass by without truly experiencing it? If so, you’re among 70% of Americans, according to a recent study published by the American Sociological Review. Luckily, 30% of Americans feel that that they do have the work-life balance figured out, so we get to learn from them!
 
Here are three tools people use who feel equally satisfied with the time they spend working and the time they spend playing:

• They Make Mindful Choices Based on What They Love
  While some of us do what we think we’re supposed to do with our lives, others actively pursue what they love, despite what other people say. It’s these people who end up with jobs that bring joy to their lives, and if your job itself is fun, then a work/life balance is naturally built into your everyday routine.
   
•  They Avoid People Pleasing
  It’s human instinct to want to please other people. We think if we please them, then they’ll like us, and being liked is very high on our priority list. The glitch in this logic, however, is that we can do everything someone asks of us and it won’t guarantee they like us, or even treat us with the respect we deserve. So, when we agree to meet someone for lunch, or help plan a party, or anything time consuming just to please somebody else, we’re wasting our very valuable time and energy. That same time and energy could be used to do something we actually enjoy, and the more time we spend enjoying ourselves, the more balanced we will feel.
   
•  They Turn Off Distractions
  Back in the good old days, wives used to complain of their husbands “taking the office home at night”, meaning that even after he got home, he was still distracted by his work. Today, more often than not, both people in a partnership have jobs, and having a Smart Phone makes it almost impossible to turn off from work mode. In other words, it’s as if we are all taking work, and the entire world of news, with us wherever we go. As a result, we are robbed of the benefits of warm human interactions and any chance of experiencing the pleasures of living in the moment. The good news is we have the power: people who say they experience a happy work-life balance report that they turn off their electronic devices for certain periods of time daily or weekly, and as a result have extra time and space for the things that bring them joy.

 So, pick one of these three tricks or go ahead and try them all! You were put on this planet for a reason, don’t let the daily grind make you forget it!