Educators

February 2, 2024

Time Management and Work-Life Balance: Tips for Higher Ed Professors

Time ManagementTeacher Burn-outProfessorsHigher Educations
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Summations Team

Research shows that 60% of professors work at least 9 hours a day. Some even work 10 hours a day. This blog will show you why you should care about work-life balance and what you can do to implement work-life balance into your life.

Definition and Importance of Work-Life Balance

Work-life balance is when a person can have a balance between their work commitments and their life commitments. What this entails is that professors have enough time for teaching, researching, and mentoring while still having enough time for family, relaxation, and hobbies. However, in the higher education industry, it has become normal to prioritize productivity over a person’s well-being. The universities encourage professors to work for longer hours to finish all the tasks assigned to them. The increasing work hours have made it so that professors do not have enough time to make their family commitments.

An Illustration of How many hours per weekday do you typically work

How many hours per weekday you typically work

A graph showing the likelihood of leaving higher education in the next five years due to an excessive workload

A graph showing the likelihood of leaving higher education in the next five years due
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/work-life-balance-survey-2022


It is very important to have a work-life balance in one's life. Lack of work-life balance can lead to health problems, relationship problems, lack of productivity, burnout, and employee dissatisfaction. Extreme stress can cause irreversible health conditions. A study at UCL discovered that people who work for 3 or more hours more than their given hours have a 60% higher chance of developing heart-related problems. This study proves that working overtime can and will cause professors health problems. Relationship problems can occur if professors do not put in time and commitment to cultivate their relationships with the people they care about. A recent survey aimed at university staff members gave some interesting insights into staff's work-life balance. The survey discovered that staff feel stressed out and are underpaid for the time and effort they put into their work. They are also struggling to manage their growing workload and make time for personal relationships and their families.

Strategies to Improve Work-Life Balance

Managing time is essential to having a work-life balance. It allows a person to see how much time they are allocating to their work and their life. This will allow them to make improvements to have a healthy lifestyle. Here are some strategies professors can use to stay organized and manage their time effectively. Firstly, use a planner for your long-term and short-term tasks, this can help you outline lessons, meetings, and deadlines so you are always prepared well in advance. This helps eliminate stress and anxiety. Secondly, learn to prioritize tasks and do the hardest task first. This will allow you to use your energy and resources to get the most important tasks finished first. Ultimately, leading to reduced stress and more clarity. Thirdly, learn to time block your day and week. Time Blocking is when you assign specific tasks to a specific time of the day. This can help you visualize the amount of time you have in a day and how much time you should be spending on each task. This technique eliminates uncertainty and helps you stay focused on your commitments. Lastly, give yourself a break between your tasks. This will allow you to recharge your energy and mindset which will ultimately lead to less burnout. This will also allow you time to connect with your peers on an emotional level not just professionally.

A graph indicating to what extent you agree that your job interferes with your ability to conduct a successful relationship

A graph indicating to what extent you agree that your job interferes with your ability to conduct a successful relationship


Setting boundaries is a critical part of setting a work-life balance. It is very important to separate your working area from your relaxation space. Professors can do this by clearly outlining their boundaries when it comes to in-person work or remote work. For in-person work, find an area that does not distract you from your colleagues and you can focus on your work. Communicate these needs to your colleagues and ask them to respect your boundaries. Next, for remote work, designate a specific space in your house that is only going to be used for work. Make this space separate from your living area or area where you relax. This will help build a routine and help you enforce your boundaries. It can also be valuable to ask your coworkers to not contact you after hours. Turn off your email notification after you are done with your work hours. This will help you separate work from your home life.

Delegating and collaborating on tasks with your coworkers can help reduce workload. A study done by the International Journal of Social Policy and Education discovered that participants felt they did not have the right faculty support to help them with content and material creation responsibilities. They would like it if their colleagues were more involved in the decision-making process so the participant could decrease their extremely high workload. This study proves that faculty support is very important and essential to have a work-life balance. For this reason, here are some techniques and strategies you can use to help decrease your workload. Working with colleagues can help decrease decision fatigue. Decision fatigue is when your ability to make informed decisions deteriorates as time goes by which can lead to more stress and decreased productivity and performance. A solution to this is to request your college to help you make decisions, this will allow you to share the responsibility which will cause less stress. If this is not possible, you can also make important decisions at the start of your day when your brain is the most active and productive. Next, stop over-committing to tasks and responsibilities that hinder your well-being. Learn to evaluate the type of additional task that is being presented to you, some tasks may not be worth delegating your time to when you have more important tasks or your non-work time might be more intrinsically important. Identify these tasks and activities that give you unnecessary stress and eliminate them from your work life so you can focus on growing your career and life.

In conclusion, it is very crucial to have a work-life balance and learn how to prioritize yourself. If a work-life balance is not set, it can lead to health problems, relationship problems, lack of productivity, burnout, and employee dissatisfaction. To combat these negative effects, professors should learn to manage time, set boundaries, and learn to delegate and collaborate with their co-workers to reduce their workload.

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