Work Life Balance

By Amit Gupta, Head of EIS Business, Delta India

Four Key pillars in your life are: Work, Self (Health), Family and Social Circle. Each one is important to excel in the other pillars.

Health is one area that is ignored by many engrossed in their professional pursuit. I too realized this as late as five years back. Fortunately, that realization came better late than never.

Before that, I would have used a bike or a car to cover a distance of 500 meters. Fortunately, I got the opportunity to get connected with a health-conscious friend circle.

It started with daily yoga for 45 minutes to one hour in nature. Then I started with alternate day walk/jogging and yoga. It has been a fascinating journey from reluctance to walk 500 meters to participating in my first 10 Km marathon in February 2017, to several half marathons by now.

It’s real fun when you get to do it with your family, colleagues and sometimes with your customers. I have been fortunate to build this habit in my team and get all my colleagues to participate in quite a few such events.

It’s really fun competing with pals half your age and winning workweek or weekend challenges. Now it has become a habit. Lockdown brought a new dimension of consistency.

It’s now over 450 days of doing a minimum of 10,000 steps each day with an average of 15,000 steps/10 Km+ in the last year.

Starting the day at 6:30 am and giving the first one hour to 90 minutes to yourself rejuvenates me to keep active throughout the day. It helps me in greater focus and the ability to concentrate on the task at hand – this is known as mindfulness.

Bringing a social element into your work life is equally important. Engaging with teams for Business is normal. However, engaging with teams on a common area of interest adds a different dimension.

Joining for an occasional breakfast with colleagues after covering a 15-20 Km run is one more way of engaging with my team.

Cricket is religion in India and knowing how you can get your team to a playground to connect beyond KPI can help in building greater bonds.

I have been fortunate to engage over 60 colleagues month over month on a common playground in the past. COVID, however, has brought a few challenges as one needs to follow essential COVID behavior.

Vacation is another important aspect which I have tried to follow for over a decade. It’s not a luxury, but a necessity. A break from work provides you with the chance to switch off and enjoy yourself.

It is also a great opportunity to recuperate and recharge. I encourage my teams to take one vacation every year. Numerous studies show that vacations increase productivity and reduce stress.

I strongly believe, maintaining a healthy work-life balance is not only important for health and relationships, but it also improves your productivity, and ultimately performance.

If your people don’t view work as a chore, then they will work harder, make fewer mistakes and are more likely to become advocates for your brand.

Businesses that gain a reputation for encouraging work-life balance have become very attractive – especially when you consider how difficult it can be to attract and retain younger workers these days.

About the Author (Guest Contributor)

Amit Gupta

I am a professional with 29 years of experience in Business Development, Key account management and P&L management. I joined Delta in 2019 and now head the Delta India EIS Business with a vision to position Delta as a preferred Energy Infrastructure Solution company. I’m a health freak, sports enthusiast, cricket player and music lover. I am a student forever trying to learn from my team, peers and seniors. I also try to spend quality time with my family.

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