Achieving occupational balance

Occupational balance is about having the right mix of daily activities that suit your life. Occupational therapists recognise this balance as key to improving wellbeing and overall quality of life. When work takes over and there’s little time for rest or enjoyment, it can lead to stress, burnout and poor health. 

On this page

• What is occupational balance? 
• How occupational therapists support balance
• Occupational balance and rehabilitation
• Evaluate your occupational balance
• References
• Further information 

What is occupational balance? 

Occupational balance is achieved when an individual experiences the right number of occupations and the right variation between those occupations.

Occupational therapists advocate that better wellbeing and quality of life is experienced when there is occupational balance. Too much work and not enough time to engage in meaningful leisure activities and interests creates an imbalance, which may result in ill health. People with stress-related disorders or depression often experience occupational imbalance.  

How occupational therapists support balance 

Occupational therapists work with people to: 

• Evaluate their occupational balance
• Encourage them to value and make time for enjoyable, meaningful activities
• Support lifestyle changes that allow for engagement in a variety of meaningful occupations

Studies show that taking breaks from demanding activities and engaging in enjoyable ones are essential to managing everyday stressors (Hakansson & Sonn, 2006; Sonnentag & Zijlstra, 2006; Van Hooff, 2007).

Occupational balance and rehabilitation

A 2010 qualitative study in a Swedish vocational rehabilitation clinic explored how people with stress-related disorders regain occupational balance in their everyday life.

Participants often reported focusing almost solely on work and on meeting the needs of others, while neglecting occupations that contributed to their own wellbeing and recovery (Eriksson et al., 2010).

The rehabilitation programme helped participants re-evaluate their occupations. By engaging in activities such as gardening during rehabilitation, individuals began to appreciate the value of these occupations, which empowered them to implement meaningful changes after rehabilitation. A key point here is 'doing' - where the participants' actual engagement in an activity enabled them to appreciate the benefits, which in turn motivated them to reintroduce enjoyable occupations into their lives.  

Evaluate your occupational balance

Occupational balance means having time for what you want to do, balanced with what you need to do for health and emotional wellbeing.

Signs of occupational imbalance include:

• Your 'to-do' list never seems done
• Constantly feeling busy but unaccomplished
• Experiencing increased stress or burnout
• Frequent tiredness and difficulty sleeping
• Headaches, chest pain or dizziness
• Difficulty concentrating or loss of focus

How to evaluate your week

1. Make a list of your weekly occupations.
2. Organise them into themes:

• Self-care: showering, dressing, preparing and eating food
• Productivity: paid employment
• Unpaid work: study, housework
• Leisure: sports, hobbies, gardening (if pleasurable), outings, socialising (active vs passive)
• Sleep

3. Estimate the time spent on each theme for a typical week. Consider representing this visually with a pie chart, like below.

Reflect on your occupational balance

• How do you feel about your balance of activities?
• Is the balance healthy and what you want?
• What changes would you like to make?

Set at least one achievable occupational goal, such as:

• Walk an extra five minutes daily
• Meet a friend once a week for tea or coffee
• Take a walk during your lunchbreak
• Spend 30 minutes gardening or participating in another outdoor activity at the weekend

Staying motivated

Share your goals with someone who can support and encourage you. Explain why you’re setting these goals and discuss how they can help you achieve them. 

After engaging in your chosen activity, reflect on:

• How your body feels
• Your thoughts
• Your mood

Consider keeping an occupation diary to capture moments and notice benefits.

Re-evaluate your balance

Create a new pie chart or list:

• Are you doing the occupations you want, for the amount of time you want?
• Is there enough variety?

You can also evaluate your balance daily, especially on workdays.

References

• Eriksson, T. et al. (2010). An exploratory study of the rehabilitation process of people with stress-related disorders. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 17(1), 29–39.
• Hakansson, C., Dahlin-Ivanoff, S., Sonn, U. (2006). Achieving balance in everyday life. Journal of Occupational Science, 13, 74–82.
• Sonnentag, S., Zijlstra, F.R. (2006). Job characteristics and off-job activities as predictors of need for recovery, well-being, and fatigue. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91.
• Van Hooff, M.L., Geurts, S.A., Kompier, M.A., Taris, T.W. (2007). Work days, in-between workdays and the weekend: A diary study on effort and recovery. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 80, 599–613.

Further information

Occupational therapy - your stories

Veterinary professionals share personal experiences and insights around reasonable adjustments. Their stories include examples of occupational therapy approaches that helped them manage workplace health challenges. 

About the author

The pages in this section were written by occupational therapy expert Professor Nicola Spalding - view Nicola's biography.   

Back to top