Tip #16: Work normal hours (and take the full lunch hour)

In the introduction to this blog, I made the point that some posts will not apply equally to everyone. This is one of those instances. People's occupations and financial situations are widely varied. You may work a job where there is no such thing as "normal hours." You may work 12 hours at a time, be on call 24 hours a day, work non-standard shifts, or have a schedule that is completely inconsistent from one week to the next. You might have an important deadline to meet, or your finances may be such that you have little choice but to take any overtime you can get. You may also be under strict rules about when you can take a lunch break and for how long.

These are all understandable exceptions. The spirit behind this tip is not to encourage you to snub your employer, but rather to encourage a proper work-life balance and not use singleness as an excuse for workaholism. When you're alone, it can be tempting to spend more time at your work than is really necessary. It's lonely to come home to an empty house at the end of the day. Work might be where you feel most comfortable and most needed. It's where you are in your element and where there is enough to distract your mind from thinking about your situation. It helps occupy the hours of silence and, in effect, shortens the day so that you don't have to spend time with yourself as much.

But that's also where the trap lies. One of the most important aspects of coping with the single life that goes on forever is to become comfortable being with yourself. It is also important to free up enough time to spend with friends and to find other things to enjoy besides your work. We only get 24 hours in a day, so we must carefully guard how those hours are used. This applies not only the hours before and after work, but also the breaks we get during work. Resist the urge to eat your lunch at your desk. If feasible, disengage for a while. Allow your mind and body to rest for bit. If you get a full hour for lunch, use it. Take a walk around the block. Read a book. Engage your spirituality. Let your brain wander. It all helps keep things in balance.

In doing this, you may get a bonus. You may just find that you ultimately become more productive, doing more in less time, because your fatigue level has greatly diminished. You might even start living a more fulfilling, well-rounded life. That is what can happen when you are willing to challenge the hours of singleness head on by opening them up, rather than retreating from them by tying yourself to your workplace.