Overworking causes stress, damages relationships and makes people ill. Many people struggle to find a good balance between work and home, especially if they are in charge of projects or teams. Follow our ten steps for a healthier, more balanced life.

1. List your personal commitments in order of importance. These could include partner, children, extended family, friends, relaxation, hobbies or leisure activities.

2. Now break your working day down into categories such as administration, staff management, key projects, client liaison, and so on. Make the list all-encompassing.

3. Write down how much time you devote to each in an average week (include weekends). Accuracy is vital, so, in advance, maintain a daily diary if it helps.  

4. Look at the big picture. Regardless of whether you think you have any choice, are you devoting too much time to work at the expense of your personal life? If you are and this is causing you anxiety, it’s time to act. Think about what your ideal work-life balance would be.

5. Set realistic goals. If you work 12-hour days, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to change to eight-hour days straightaway. However, improved time-management might enable you to finish work an hour or two earlier or even have an afternoon off here and there.

6. Learn to be a little selfish. Stop doing things that are a poor use of your time and expertise – for example, answering phone enquiries someone else should deal with. Use your time and skills to the maximum benefit of the business.

7. Improve your habits. For example, stop checking for emails every half hour if three times a day is sufficient. Go home on time more regularly. It’s easy to get into the routine of working late because that’s what you’ve become used to.

8. Write a 'to-do' list every morning. This will ensure you get through everything and stop you getting sidetracked. As well as listing tasks in order of priority, set time limits for each and stick to them. If you don’t get something done, put it on top of your list for the following day.

9. Delegate tasks to others, but make sure they’re up to the job (otherwise you’ll just be making more work for yourself). You might need to learn to let go.

10. Take regular breaks. Removing yourself from the location in which you work for a hot drink or some fresh air will make you less stressed, more focused and productive. Likewise, try never to work weekends and always take all of your annual leave.

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