How to Balance Work and Pleasure

1. Step 1
   Organize your life. A daily planner can help you balance your life. Let it guide you through your day. Make a place for writing down professional and personal goals to keep you focused.
   
2. Step 2
   Make the effort to plan each day's activities with both work and play time. Prioritize what you need to do but make sure to balance business and pleasure. Write things like "Take Andy to the park" and "Read novel" in your organizer to make sure they get done.
   
3. Step 3
   Be critical of your job. Explore other work options if it takes up more than 40 hours a week or you're burned out when you get home. Reduce your work hours if you can afford it. Eliminate long-term or large loan payments so you can reduce your work hours.
   
4. Step 4
   Learn to say "no" to family, friends and co-workers more often. Tell anyone asking for favors that you need to look at your schedule and will get back to them. Be honest about whether you want to do what they ask of you.
   
5. Step 5
   Use the expertise of others to bring balance into your life. Outsource administrative tasks if you own your own business. Pay your teenage niece to baby-sit your kids so you can take a yoga class. Hire a tax preparer to handle your tax headaches.