"It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working..."

Are you working in a company where the ’40 hour working week’ mentioned in your employment contract is just a pipedream?

You find yourself regularly working overtime but you don’t get paid for it because you are a salaried employee who is not eligible for overtime.

A closer look at your contract will have words to the effect of “you are expected to work the hours necessary to complete your job satisfactorily”. A polite and legal way of saying “be prepared to burn midnight oil at work”!

If you’re working in an environment where most people stay late, leaving on time will make you look like a “clock-watcher” – a dirty word in corporate speak! And so you fall in line and work late regularly.

While occasionally putting in extra hours of unpaid work might go with the territory of being in a position of responsibility, what are the side effects of regularly working late?

- Is “all work and no play” taking a toll on your health? - Is your relationship feeling the burden? - Are you missing out on time with your kids? - Are you unable to find time to pursue your leisure interests? - Is your social life under strain? - Is too much time at work raising your stress levels?

Any or all of the above could be the case when you find yourself spending many extra hours at work. Trying to find the right balance between work and life is challenging but essential. After all, time is not limitless for any of us.

How much of your personal life are you willing to sacrifice to make a good impression at work? Only you can answer this question as we have all have our own priorities.

If you love your job with a passion and can’t think of anything more enjoyable than being at work, then you can ignore this post. You’ve chosen work as your no.1 priority…good luck!

However, if you’re like the majority of people in middle management all over the world, you either detest your job or feel indifferent towards it. This is when things get really tough to swallow if you’re forced to let your work-life balance tilt too much in favour of work.

If you’d like some help with restoring balance in your life, DM me for a chat.