Work-Life Fit is not about perfection when striking that balance but it's about progressing, moving towards our goals consistently with the resources we have whilst feeling fulfilled. Very grand definition but of course it is easier said than done especially when we have limited time and energy.

Take a break from overworking and start living a healthier and sustainable lifestyle with Elizabeth Batalla who has been in the corporate world for over 30 years, she has been a lecturer at various academic institutions, and is the founder of the Institute for achievement and excellence, where she helps people level up in nine areas of life so they can achieve the balance they are after.

In this episode, you will discover

1. what is excellence when it comes to work life - fit
2. what are the nine areas in life we need to keep in balance
3. how to maintain a healthy work/life fit

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Hello happiness seekers.

I'm a work psychologist, Klaudia Mitura, and I'm on a journey to test drive and explore some of the best happiness hacks from the leading experts around the globe and share with you what I have learned. And today I welcome you to the episode of Work Life Fit.

So we definitely have seen in the research that overworking is not good for us and it's not good for our organizations that we are working in because it simply leads to burnout that has lots of negative, negative, long lasting effects.

But let's be honest, with so many conflicting demands, it's sometimes very hard to overcome any unhealthy work habits and to sustain healthy work life fit. Also, the issue is that work life fit will mean different things to different people.

So for me personally, it's not necessarily about the perfection when striking the balance between personal life and professional life, but it's more about progressing in both aspects, moving towards my goals, consistently with the resources I have and feeling fulfilled. Very grand definition, but of course it's much easier said than done, especially when we have that limited energy and time.

So today my guest, Elizabeth Batala has been in corporate world for over 30 years. She has been a lecturer at various academic institutions and she is the founder of the Institute for Achievement and Excellence.

Elizabeth helps people level up in nine areas of life so they can achieve that specific balance they are after. So in this episode you will discover what is excellence when it comes to work life set.

What are those nine areas of life that we need to be looking after and how can we maintain that healthy work life balance? I hope that you enjoyed this episode and that it will help you to feel happier, to keep in touch.

Remember to sign up for my monthly POD letter in which you receive some top happiness hacks with relevant podcast episodes. You can find more information@&happiness.co.uk and with no further ado, welcome to Work Life Fit and Happiness.

Hello Liz. I mean, welcome to and Happiness. Very excited to have you here.

I'm absolutely excited to be here, thank you.

We are chatting about, I think very important topic, Work Life Balance. Work Life Fit. But really thinking about the idea of, yes, balancing those really important parts in our journey of happiness, I would say.

So first of all, how would you describe what is actually successful or excellent Work Life Fit?

That's a really good question, Claudia.

What I consider excellence when it comes to work life balance is simply being the best you can be in all that you do, but without expecting perfection. It's as simple as that.

Oh my goodness. So already we like covering topic. Okay. You cannot have always 100%. You cannot, without that perfection just being your best. Okay?

Yes, absolutely. Because excellence means different things for different people.

We all have different levels of capabilities, understanding, educational background, availability of finances, resources, support, etc. So what I deem to be excellence for me may not be for you, and it may not be for the person next to you.

But what is important is just being the best you can be and using the resources you have and doing the best you can each and every day. But being gentle with yourself, understanding that you will never achieve perfection. Because perfection is elusive.

And in fact, it's quite damaging because it creates a state of overwhelm and paralyzes most people in that they just don't want to do anymore or do nothing rather than do something. So when it comes to work, life balance, it's about that. It's simply being the best you can be with what you have in that particular moment in time.

Yes. And just that sentence already gives me a little bit of relief.

Yes.

You know, and I think that's so important, and I must admit, I don't think I ever really thought about and reflected upon what's the best means for me in certain areas of your life. Now, I know that you work with a very specific model that speak specifically about nine areas of life.

Yes.

Can you tell us more about that?

Sure. So I work with a model called achieving Excellence, the three forces in achieving excellence.

Because I look at excellence and elevating oneself as a holistic approach.

Because let's face it, Claudia, if we are unhealthy, but we have finances and we have love, we're still not entirely happy because we are physically ill or mentally ill and vice versa. If we have all the other things but we can't financially afford to live, it can be quite frustrating.

So when it comes to excellence, I take a holistic approach. And that approach is encapsulated in a framework called the three Forces in achieving Excellence.

Now, in each of the forces, there are three life areas. That's why we end up with nine life areas. So the first force looks at your identity, the person that you are.

What can you do to level up or elevate that person?

And I look at things like personal brand, your demeanor, how you carry yourself, as well as your personal style, how you present yourself to the world. The second force I look at connections. And connections is all about relationships, relationships with yourself and others.

So in that I look at your physical health, your mental health, and your emotional health. And then finally I look at your status, your quality, your standard of life.

And in that, the three life areas is how you navigate your professional world, how you manage your finances, and how you set yourself up for future success.

Brilliant, very comprehensive and very, as you said, very holistic. Because we have everything from me as a person, my personality, my demeanor, to how I'm thinking about the future future and about their finances.

So really, really interesting there, Liz, when you say I look at, what is it exactly that you explore or discover or you investigate when you're working with your clients and you're looking specifically at those areas of excellence.

So again, each individual is different in their own right.

And this is why, first of all, I work with an assessment so that the person would do an assessment so that I can understand their areas of strengths and their areas for improvement. I don't like, say, weaknesses, just simply areas for improvement.

And based on that, and based on what that person wants to accomplish in their life, then we look at areas where we can either strengthen or they are fine. And we don't necessarily need to do anything. But in terms of what I look for, it's not anything specific. I look at it in terms of a dimmer switch.

We all have light within us and we all do well across all of the nine life areas. But there are areas that may require a bit of intervention. So it's like a dimmer switch.

The more you turn that dial is the brighter you shine and where you want to shine, how brightly you want to shine, it all depends on you. So let's say, for instance, you're not great with routines.

We look at why you're not great with routines, how you can break that pattern, how you can implement routines in a very easy way, in a way that fits your lifestyle, your personality, your commitments, so that you can be consistent long term and see the benefits of it. And that's how I work with clients.

Okay, brilliant. Thank you so much. Liz. Are you finding out that potentially the more balance we have between those different areas of life, the happier people are?

What's the connection and what's the relationship of this model with our overall happiness and well being?

Again, it all depends on the individual. Because what makes me feel happy, Claudia, may not make you feel happy. What is a balance for me may not be a balance for you.

So for instance, for me, if I'm a career driven person, then perhaps spending 50% of my time, as opposed to 30% of my time on my career makes me happy.

So it's determining, it's internal, it's looking within and determining what makes me happy as an individual and then deciding on how I am going to use my resources to accomplish that. And when I say resources, I'm talking about my time, my energy and my finances. How am I going to utilize that to ensure that I make myself happy?

So it's about identifying where I want to be in life, what makes me happy, and then attaching or using the resources to achieve that.

Okay. Love it. Because I think that's really interesting because I think the word balance is quite misleading.

Yes.

Personally, when I think about balance, I think about taking all those nine components of life and everything has to be split evenly. A little bit like a pie. No, but what you saying is we have different values, different things are driving us forward.

And it's absolutely fine to say, okay, what makes me happy, it's a career, and therefore I'm going to split majority of my resources in relation to the career. So I think that's really, really fascinating.

And that's maybe why the concept of work life fit for me personally as a term works a little bit better than thinking about that balance that everything has to have the same amount of attention, time or resources. But actually, no, it really depends on our values.

Exactly. Because what feels balanced for me may not necessarily feel balanced for you.

And again, nine life areas may sound like a lot, but it's not about getting 100% or reaching 100% in all nine life areas. In fact, that is aiming for perfection and that is unattainable.

We are human beings and as long as we are living on this earth, there will always be room for improvement. So there will never be a situation where you reach 100%. And even if you do do, it's human nature to want more.

So as soon as you hit that 100%, the goalpost shifts and you're no longer at 100%. Yeah.

So it's about determining what is valuable to you, as you said, and fitting into that where you deem most you are most happy, regardless of how you split things up. It is what makes you, the individual, happy.

Yes. And you know, fascinating and yet so difficult to achieve.

Right.

Because there are so many external demands and pressures that we experience and obviously even relationships around us may expect something different when it comes to, to that fit. So that is really, really fascinating to be really confident.

Yes.

In our values, in our choices to be able to make this work.

Yes. And the fit, it doesn't have to be all nine life areas every single day because you may not be able to exercise Every single day.

You may not feel like moving towards your career every single day. But overall, whether it be a week or a month, depending on which timeline suits you, at least have a touch point across all of the nine life areas.

And that is what it is about. So that you don't neglect any one part of your life.

Because the moment you neglect one part of your life for too long, maybe for a while, but for too long, then the fit starts to lose momentum and what happens is you start to retract in that area and then for some reason you start feeling unhappy and may not be able to quite understand why. It's because we are meant to live the best possible life in every area of our being.

And when one area is not fueled for too long or is left behind for too long, then this is the outcome.

Wow, Liz, you're making it very, like, practical and realistic. I love it because you're right. The moment we think, I'm thinking nine areas, like, oh my goodness, nine components of my life.

No, not at all.

Exactly. Thinking about that, those components will fluctuate, that fit will be constantly changing, and you need to have those specific touch points.

But of course, you have spotlights across those components, depending of how things are important to you. Yes, brilliant. I really, really love that. I think that's really practical and pragmatic way of approaching work life fit.

Moving away from the perfectionism, moving towards much more realistic approach. Okay, let's say I want to review and I want to really reassess.

Where do I sit in those current nine components of life and what I could do, how I could do things differently. Can you give us some practical tips for listeners to explore to maintain that healthy or that suitable, let's say, work life fit?

Definitely. So, first of all, it's like a roadmap. Know where you are, know where you want to go so that you understand your gap.

Whether you do an assessment, whether you speak to a loved one, etc.

Identify where you are, where you want to go so that you can establish the gap because it points you in the right direction and it helps you to decide what it is you want to do. So start where you are, use what you have, and do the best that you can. That's one. The two other components. The second one. Kiss. Keep it stupid.

Simple. As humans, we tend to overcomplicate things. Oh, my goodness. And when we overcomplicate things, what do we do?

We end up not doing it at all or we end up not being able to be consistent and consistency is key. Because with small consistent steps, anyone can achieve great things. But it's the consistency that counts.

So I would say establish your gap and be realistic with the resources that you have in order to close that gap. Keep it stupid simple so that you can keep on track and obviously have a good support system.

People who will encourage you and who want to see you succeed. And finally, do not listen to negative noise.

And I mean the negative noise of self talk as well as a negative noise of others who do not understand your why. Right. Your dreams are your dreams and your dreams are special to you. Do not let anyone take that away from you, including yourself. Effy.

Okay, great. So we have quite a lot in there. I'm just thinking where do I go? How do we unpack this?

So first of all, as you said, thinking about a bit of self assessment and I like the fact that you are saying, okay, it's our self reflection, but we could maybe also have a good discussion discussion with someone who we trust and someone who knows us to provide some feedback.

Yes.

Then you're speaking about this idea of kiss, keeping it very, very simple and yes, absolutely. It's so easy to over complicate things. The moment we like, for instance, the moment we start exercising. I mean, I always do that.

Oh yeah, I'll be exercising then. I expect myself to be on the kind of very strict routine, but you know how feasible that is among all the other commitments that I have.

So it's really interesting that you're keeping it, keep it simple, keep it small so that you can commit to that. And the final one, that noise so interesting because I guess there are two factors to consider there.

First of all, our internal talk changes quite a lot throughout the day, throughout the week, how tired we are, how energized we are, how good the week was.

So even though on Monday you may feel that great, you know, I can really achieve this and I can stick to my schedule and I really can achieve all my dreams by end of the week. I find that when my energy is going down, I feel a bit less assured. Yes, I can conquer the world.

So I think that's quite interesting of how can we be managing that better. And the second interesting point you said is the external noise. And unfortunately we do live in a very noisy world. You open.

I always feel like the moment I open social media, there is someone telling me what else I should be doing or things I might be missing out of. You know, it's so much information there and also factual information, scientific information, what's good for us. What's not good for us?

So it's quite lots of noise. What's your advice on navigating that, say, internal struggles that we may have, but also the external pressures and the external noise.

So what I tend to do when it comes to internal noise, understand that the internal noise in your head doesn't have all the facts, which means it is navigating you in a way that may not be correct. It could be out of fear, it could be out of feeling overwhelmed, etc.

But most times the reality that that voice is telling you is not the actual factual reality that is existing.

So what I tend to do to avoid myself ruminating and spiraling into a downward curve, I do something that distracts me and something that I enjoy doing.

Whether it be creating something, writing an email to a friend, or just picking up the phone and giving someone a call who I haven't spoken to in a while and paying them compliment that could make that other person's day to the point where they just shine as well. So I do something to break the pattern. That's the internal noise.

I do something to break the pattern when it comes, because that comes with being conscious. Of course, when it comes to the external noise, I distance myself from it as much as I possibly can.

Or if I can't, if I'm one of those people who, you know, I really do enjoy social media. What I will do is I will not keep going onto social media. I will say to myself, okay, I'm only going to check it three times a day.

And when I do, I'm going to set a timer for 15 minutes, no more than that, because too much exposure to negativity, regardless of how strong an individual you are, it can break you down. Think about it. Negative information, day in, day out, consistently, all the time. The strongest of persons will break after a period of time.

So it's about protecting yourself, not being elusive about it, not being naive about it, but protecting yourself against that negativity. Because negativity takes energy. It takes energy away from you and energy that is valuable for you to push yourself forward.

Because to push yourself forward also takes energy. And that's, you know, those are maybe perhaps two very easy things that you can do.

Distract yourself from your internal voice by doing something positive.

Yeah, thank you so much, Liz. And I can really relate to these.

I, I definitely like taking a mental rests, as I call them, just to break the pattern sometimes of that negative thinking.

And another tip I have that always helps me a little bit with the negative self talk is to sometimes our mind gets hooked on something we've seen or we read or someone said to us or someone done. And my mind kind of gets like, you know, a dog with a bone situation. And I just keep overthinking something.

And what really helps me is to remind myself about that idea that we have limited energy.

And I always say to myself, you know what, that might be a valid point that someone shouldn't or shouldn't have done something, or I don't like this, or I like this, or I have a strong opinion about something, but ultimately I don't want to waste my energy on it.

And for some reason that really helps me because then I can take that energy and then invest it into something more positive that is beneficial to other people or is beneficial to myself. So I think that's quite interesting as well, remembering that, yes, we have limited time, attention, energy and resources.

So that's why we have to make those choices and that's why we're speaking about that fit. And being happy means having the fit that works for you. Liz, final question for you. This show is about happiness.

So my question is very much, what makes you happy?

That is a fantastic question, a big one. What makes me happy? I would say living a peaceful, simple and balanced life, that makes me happy.

Okay, so yeah, very simple answer here and I know it's a very big question, but thank you so much.

So really thinking about that fit, really thinking about that balance and you're giving us so many great practical advice today and guidance and I must say I really loved your realistic approach to this.

I'm definitely a guilty perfectionist and I always feel, oh, you know, I should be doing more of, of this and I really should be thinking about that, but actually being realistic, keeping it small and understanding that nine components of life, but actually touch points at all of them and that just changes over time as well. And that's absolutely okay. So no, absolutely love that. Liz, thank you so much.

A pleasure.

Thank you so much, Liz, for sharing her expertise. As a summary, there are three specific aspects which impact our work and personal life.

And those are the aspects that we need to think about balancing to find more fulfillment and happiness. So number one was our identity, which is composed of our personal brand, the way we communicate with others, and the level of our self confidence.

Connection was the second component, which is about connecting with our physical health, mental health and emotional connections with others.

And the final third component, status, is about being happy with our career choices, having strong financial skills and being able to plan for the future.

And together, all those components create those nine areas of life that can definitely impact our personal happiness, our work as well, and can help us to find more fulfillment if we try to slot them in our busy lives and find that balance. Thank you again so much for listening. The final episode of this third series of Unhappiness is about X Factor.

So what are your strengths and how they can improve your happiness? I hope to see you there, and as always, I dare you to be happy. Bye.