When you have a work-life balance, it means that you are managing your work and personal life efficiently. You’re not sacrificing your personal life for the sake of work, and vice versa. While everyone should aspire to have a good work-life balance, it can be challenging for our service members.

Long work hours, deployments, overnight missions, and being on-call at all hours present unique challenges for our active duty troops. While it can be difficult to establish a work-life balance while you’re in the military, it’s possible by using the proper methods.

Importance of Having a Work-Life Balance

A work-life balance is essential for your mental health, career, and relationships. If you spend too much time focusing on work, you could sacrifice the quality of your relationships with family and friends. If you spend too much time away from work, you could risk creating more challenges in your career.

Establishing a good work-life balance has many short and long-term benefits, which include:

●Improved mental and physical health

●Improved productivity

●Minimized stress

●Improved mindfulness

●Heightened motivation and commitment

●Improved personal relationships

●Reduced risk of burnout

●Heightened engagement

Focusing on creating a healthy work-life balance can go a long way in improving your overall well-being. You’ll also improve your career outlook and relationships, especially with your immediate family. It’s important to focus on your work, but it’s just as important to focus on your family and loved ones.

Unique Challenges With a Work-Life Balance in the Military

In the military, it can be challenging to establish a work-life balance the way you can in a civilian career. When you’re given a direct order by your command, you’ll have to follow it—no questions asked. Service members are also often kept away from home, whether they’re training, on a mission, or deploying.

While there are challenges with having a quality work-life balance in the military, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible. With the right strategies and effort, you can thrive in your military career and your life at home.

Tips for Creating a Work-Life Balance in the Military

If you need some tips to help you create a healthy work-life balance, we have you covered. Check out some of our tips below:

1. Stay in the Present

Whether you’re at work or home, you want to stay in the present. At work, focus on your tasks, follow orders, and do your best. Once you can go home, make your family your primary commitment. Spend meaningful time with your loved ones, which can include playing with your children, sitting down together for dinner, attending your children’s school functions, and other family-related activities. Giving your family your undivided attention when you’re home will significantly improve your quality of life and relationships.

2. Maintain Open Communication at Home

While you don’t want to bring your work problems home and let them affect your behavior around your family, you still need to communicate openly with your family. If you’re married, military spouses can experience their own set of challenges, and not knowing what’s going on can make their lives more difficult.

There are bound to be challenges with communication if you’re in the military. Some service members can’t communicate openly due to security issues or deployment limitations. And the military often requires troops to put their work first. However, you should be as honest as you’re allowed with your spouse or family members, especially about your time commitment to the military and the challenges you’re experiencing.

If you let your loved ones know you’re struggling with work or that you’re having to work long hours, it can prevent stress from compounding in your home. Spouses who are more involved in military life and culture are also more satisfied than those left in the dark.

3. Take Time for Yourself and Unplug

Spending time with family is important, but so is making time for yourself after work to unplug. You won’t be able to give your all at work or with your family if you aren’t caring for yourself. Take time for yourself on occasion, whether you hang out with friends, visit your favorite coffee shop, walk in the park, browse your favorite store, or participate in another activity you enjoy. It’s perfectly okay to take some time to recharge your batteries when you need it.

4. Schedule Time With Your Loved Ones

If you’re finding it difficult to spend meaningful time with your loved ones or you’ve fallen into a monotonous routine, try to make a meaningful effort to spend time with your family. Plan special dinners or outings when you can, even if it’s just once a month.

The best time to spend with young children is between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., also known as the “golden hours.” When you can, be there to help your children handle various tasks, including dinner, bath time, homework, and other activities. Being there when possible will make a significant difference in your relationship.

You’ll also want to carve out some time for you and your spouse. Whether you hire a babysitter for date night or spend quality time at home, meaningful connections will go a long way in improving your relationship, which will lessen your stress and help you feel more fulfilled.

5. Manage Your Time Efficiently at Work

When you can, try to finish what you need to get done at work promptly. You don’t want your work to bleed over into your family time or for compounding workloads that increase your stress. Avoid procrastinating so a task doesn’t seem insurmountable when you only have a little time to complete it. Staying motivated at work and doing as much as possible before you go home will give you more time to spend with your family or doing things you enjoy.

6. Focus on Your Health

If you’re feeling physically or mentally unwell, you won’t be at your best at work or home. You could also fall into a routine of going to work, coming home, going to bed, and repeat. Unfortunately, this leads to very little time for personal enjoyment or family bonding. You may also feel burned out, which can affect your motivation for work and the quality of your relationships.

Take time to focus on your health, which includes exercising, eating well, getting enough sleep, and other activities that are good for your well-being. As your health improves, you’ll be able to focus more at work, which will help you complete tasks more efficiently. You’ll also be more energized when you come home, allowing you to stay present in the moment and enjoy time with your loved ones.

If you’re finding it difficult to take care of yourself or you notice that your mental health is slipping, there’s no shame in getting professional counseling. A trained professional can help you spot problems you may not have noticed and help you get to the root cause. With the right guidance, a professional counselor can work with you to improve your mental health so you can better care for yourself.

7. Make Decisions With Your Family, as a Family

When you’re in the military, you’ll likely have to make tough decisions. You may have to decide between what’s best for your career or your family, which can be difficult to do on your own. However, you don’t always need to make these decisions on your own.

Instead, you can make career decisions alongside your family. Discuss your options with your spouse, and do your best to ensure your decisions are compatible with your family's needs. Making your decisions with your family when you can help reduce the risk of regrets and improve the well-being of your loved ones. You’ll also be involving your loved ones in important work decisions, which helps bridge the gap between your work and life, improving the balance between the two.

8. Realize Your Career Is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

Your military commitment is a marathon, not a sprint. If you charge ahead too fast, you may never make it to the finish line. You don’t want to regret how fast you tried to move through your career, letting your family and personal life suffer in the process. If you’re offered an assignment that you feel takes too much time away from your family or personal life, don’t be afraid to turn it down if you’re given the opportunity. More career growth opportunities will come, but you’ll never get the time you missed with family back.

9. Remember Balance Doesn’t Always Mean Equal

Many people think of a work-life balance as an equal amount of time spent on either side. However, military careers demand a lot, and you might spend more time at work than at home. But that doesn’t mean you can’t achieve a healthy work-life balance.

Think of the balance as a shifting scale, and that more time may be spent at work than home and vice versa. The time you spend at either place will change throughout your career. Whenever you’re home, focus on making memories and spending quality time with loved ones. When you’re at work, focus on doing your work efficiently for the good of your career.

Let MLC Help You Find the Right Gear So You Can Focus On What Matters

When you’re overwhelmed at work, it can easily bleed into your life at home, causing tension and stress in all aspects of your life. While we can’t solve every problem, Military Luggage Company has the right gear to make your life easier at work so you can focus more on your career and family. Our high-quality bags will assist you in a wide range of military operations, whether you’re gearing up for the field, an upcoming deployment, or a training exercise.

We stock a wide range of gear for military operations, including assault packs, duffles, kit bags, rucksacks, loadout bags, and more. You’ll find options in various colors and camos, such as coyote, olive drab, black, Multicam OCP, and many others. Browse our complete selection today to get started, or contact us with your questions.