The average person spends at least 40 hours of their time at work each week[1], so it’s a sensible place to start when thinking about New Year’s resolutions. Steve Purdy, Managing Director at Regus UK, suggests some ideas that will not only improve your work/life balance but will also make you more productive.
Make the most of all your time
We have all had those instances where we’ve been travelling or waiting for a meeting to start and thinking ‘if I was in the office I could be doing x,y & z now’. But there are now flexible workspaces available at all sorts of locations to help you maximise your time. This month, Regus opened Workpods at Gatwick airport, and innovative workspaces can also be found at locations such as motorway service stations and even shopping centres; enabling users to work flexibly, wherever and whenever it suits them. We also know from our global customer base that flexible working has a significant impact on productivity. Plan effectively so that you can make best use of the facilities around you.
You don’t have to be in the office to be working
It’s amazing how many companies and workers still believe that you have to be seen to be productive. And yet the average UK commuter will spend a year of their life getting to and from work.[2] What’s productive about spending hours on a cramped train or in a traffic jam?! A local business lounge offers a great alternative to travelling to the office and working from home. Regus centres, for example, typically open from 8am to 6pm, making it easy to work when it suits you. You can avoid the long, uncomfortable commute, and the distractions of home. Plus, the business lounge will be fully equipped with all the technology and facilities you need.
Embrace technology
Face to face meetings are unlikely to ever die out, and nor should they; meeting in person is an important part of doing business. However, they are needed less and less, especially now that telephone and video conference calls are prevalent. It’s important to use this technology to the best of your advantage. Before setting up a face-to-face meeting question whether it couldn’t be achieved on a telephone or video conference. And don’t worry if you don’t have these facilities at home or your office, they are available in plenty of flexible workspaces available nationwide, to help you embrace the future of work.
Meetings: think location, location, location
In the event that meeting in person is important, think carefully about where the meeting should take place to maximise everyone’s time and energy. Too often we assume that a meeting must take place in the same boardroom or office. But there are meeting rooms available in a range of locations which might be more convenient. Regus members tell us that hiring a meeting room for a day – or even just an hour – provides a professional change of scene that keeps things fresh and removes the risk of meetings being interrupted by day-to-day office demands.
Promote flexible working practices throughout your organisation
No matter what size of business you work for, you’ll get the most out of flexible working if it’s embraced by everyone. If you’re a manager or director lead by example so that other staff members understand the importance of flexible working and its impact on productivity. Giving staff flexible working options also shows that you trust them, and by improving their work/life balance will make them more likely to stay with your organisation for longer.
Steve Purd, Regus
Author Profile
Steve Purdy was appointed to his current role at Regus in January 2012. As Managing Director of the UK, Steve is accountable for full profit and loss responsibility, overseeing and managing the growth and development of Regus in the UK.
[1] http://www.topuniversities.com/blog/differences-average-working-hours-around-world
[2] http://www.business-money.com/announcements/commuters-spend-over-a-year-of-their-lives-travelling-to-work
