Ten ways to create a better work-life balance in 2009

Contributed by Jane Alexander, health writer and author of The Overload Solution: How to Stop Juggling and Start Living

1. Figure out where you are now. I get people to make a pie chart of their life - dividing a circle into segments that represent the various areas of their life (work, family, friends, exercise, hobbies, sleep etc). It's often a bit of a wake-up call. You need to know the problem before you can start making changes, and seeing it in graphic form helps.
2. Get clear boundaries set up. We're all "on-call" 24/7 and it is doing our heads in. Turn off your mobile when you leave work. Switch off the PC. Equally, don't take home life into work. Tough? You bet. Learn to manage without your BlackBerry beside your bed or your laptop on the beach.
3. Limit your choices. Too much choice is hugely stressful and a vast waste of time. Deliberately choose from a smaller arena. Make choices non-reversible - this saves a huge amount of time, energy and grief.
4. Cull your address book. Decide who you really want to see, rather than the people you feel you ought to see. Times change and people change - benign neglect weeds out outdated friendships. If you're not wasting time on sponges and bores, you can spend it with the people who really matter.
5. Curb information overload. You can't keep up - and you'd better accept this because you can't change it. The internet is a fabulous tool, but not always an accurate one, and you can waste a huge amount of time trawling. Sometimes it is quicker to pick up the phone and ask an expert.
6. Communicate. Talk to your partner, your boss, your co-workers, and your children. People are not mind readers, and they can't know what you're thinking unless you tell them. Set a weekly catch-up date with your partner to MOT your relationship on a regular basis, and make it non-judgmental. Listen as well as talk.
7. Make time for exercise. This may sound counter-productive when you're busy, but a half-hour jog or 20 minutes of yoga a day will help keep your stress hormones at the right levels, making you calmer, clearer-headed and healthier. Learn autogenic training - it's a life-saver.
8. Develop a strong ego. The ego is synonymous with a deep sense of inner self-worth. It's only people with weak egos who become arrogant, seduced by status, possessions and the need for power and applause. People with weak egos will have poor boundaries and are more likely to overwork and overstretch themselves. Spend some time figuring out your values, your beliefs, and what is really important in your life.
9. Time management. Old-fashioned but still the best tool for increasing productivity and curbing overload. You don't need a fancy system - simply a diary with the hours marked out. Map out the day to come, one hour at a time, and stick to it rigorously. First, put in meetings and appointments, then add in time for lunch, exercise breaks, and for checking and answering e-mails. Block out sensible chunks for big projects. If you find you have five minutes to spare, have a file of small tasks that can be slotted in.
10. Let go. The biggest myth of all is that doing it all is possible (or even desirable). Accept that if work is ruling the roost, you simply can't have a perfect relationship or an immaculate house. You can't work a 14-hour day and be a good partner and parent.

For the full debate on whether the media industry is achieving a sustainable work-life balance, look out for our feature in the 13 January print issue of Media Week.