What can be done to improve work-life balance?

Advice and insight on rebalancing the working week to give HE professionals time for the important things in life

Work-life balance spotlight

It is well reported that university staff and faculty are frequently working an unhealthy number of hours in any given week. Often, this is to the detriment of relationships, family time, hobbies and other personal commitments – and, worryingly, the trend seems to be arcing upwards. This collection of resources offers everyday tips on how to redress work-life balance, advice on which areas of the job to prioritise when climbing the academic ladder and calls on management to do their part by putting employee well-being higher on the agenda and modelling positive behaviour.

You can have it all, just not all at once

It might just be possible to achieve a good work-life balance in academia, but it requires focusing on certain areas of your life and career at certain times, says Lucas Lixinski

Lucas Lixinski

UNSW Sydney

Useful exercises

Using the pick three method to reduce HE burnout

Using the ‘pick three’ method to avoid burnout in higher education

One can accomplish only so many tasks in a given day, so try selecting three from five designated priorities and ensuring they are nurtured, says Sandy Jones

Sandy Jones

Colorado State University Global

balancing stones

Recognise work-life imbalance and restore resilience

How can academics stay energised and resilient? The first step, says Aaron Davis, is take stock of those tasks and worries that deplete energy, then add activities that refill your cup

Aaron Davis

University of Washington

Using a calendar to plan ideal uses of time can help academics avoid burnout

A calendar activity that can help in the battle against burnout

Working out how you want to spend your time versus how you actually spend it can be a useful tool for ensuring investment in your physical and mental health, says Sara Metz

Sara Metz

Colorado State University Global

Lecture hall with blur

Looking for a tenured teaching job? I’ve got one piece of advice: get lucky

By reinforcing the myth of meritocracy, we perpetuate a system grounded in cruelty and false promises. It needs to stop, says David Webster

David Webster

King's University College

In the search for work-life balance, going part-time could provide an answer

James Derounian makes the case for part-time work, particularly as academics advance in their careers – and gives tips on how to begin the transition and make a success of it

James Derounian

University of Bolton

Outside of the classroom

Living an interesting life over the summer can help teachers be creative in the classroom

The summer life of a teacher can be a boon for creativity in the classroom

For me, what makes a teacher interesting in the classroom is proportional to what interests them outside it, says Zachary Michael Jack

Zachary Michael Jack

North Central College

Woman walking past a field of yellow flowers

Walk the walk to benefit your academic research

Walking can be used to benefit academic research, help with problem-solving and promote creative thinking. Here, Anna Lois McKay explains the different ways it works

Anna Lois McKay

University of Leicester

Man playing mandolin

Why my hobbies make me a better scholar

Non-academic skills, both motor and cognitive, can enrich research capabilities in unexpected and often unexamined ways, writes Stephen W. Harmon

Stephen W. Harmon

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

A helping hand

Conversations around stress must move beyond ‘I’m fine, how are you?’

Sara Metz offers practical advice on adopting the ‘stress continuum’ – a shared language and system to help staff and students reflect upon and discuss their well-being

Sara Metz

Colorado State University Global

Pedagogical wellness specialist: the role that connects teaching and well-being

Does faculty well-being affect student outcomes? Exploring this question in the wake of post-Covid burnout and trauma led UCI to create a new position that prioritises teacher wellness

Andrea Aebersold

University of California, Irvine

Institutional change

Universities must consider family friendly employment policies and practices

Universities need policies and practices to tackle work-life balance

Broadly speaking, some countries do family-friendly policies and practices better than others – but there are great benefits to be had for everyone, says Siu Oi Ling

Siu Oi Ling

Lingnan University

Stalk of broccoli cut down, illustrating responsibility for staff well-being

Broccoli and birdsong: the shifty discourse of ‘staff well-being’

When institutions put responsibility for wellness onto individuals, they also deflect their role in staff burnout and mental ill health, writes Madeleine Davies

Madeleine Davies

University of Reading

Time pressure. Many in academia are putting in huge numbers of hours that are not rewarded or even recognised

Recognition of academia’s ‘invisible labour’ is long overdue

We must ensure that academic citizenship becomes a key part of our job descriptions, on par with teaching, research and management, say Shari Boodts and Fleur Jongepier

Shari Boodts, Fleur Jongepier

Radboud University

Timer

Slowing down earlier in the pandemic went well – so why speed back up?

The online tools adopted in the past two years do have positives, but they’ve also created a new kind of pressure – the pressure to be everywhere at once

Shari Boodts, Frederik van Dam

Radboud University

Tame the to-do list and manage an academic workload

Reduce procrastination, forget multitasking and get the to-do list done. From delegating to prioritising urgent versus important tasks, here are six practical ways to balance teaching, research and service for university faculty

Kaihan Yang , Ben K. Goh

Macau University of Science and Technology

Setting boundaries

Early career researchers must master the art of saying no and not be too eager to please

Early career researchers can say no, too

Coming up with a series of questions for ECRs about each ‘opportunity’ as it arises can help them decide what is worthy of their time, says Lucas Lixinski

Lucas Lixinski

UNSW Sydney

Tips for university faculty on negotiating salary

Salary negotiation – a guide for faculty members

In the age of inflation, increased competition and an emphasis on adjunct faculty roles, knowing how to effectively negotiate your salary is key

Vanessa Claus

Colorado State University Global

Students clamouring for attention

The boundaries to set so your students don’t take over your life

As the role of university teacher evolves, a key workplace challenge is how to offer proximity without becoming a 24/7 bot service

Ingrid Benavides , Adela Vega

Monterrey Institute of Technology