Reduced Free Time

According to a recent Work-Life Balance survey by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), an increasing number of people aged in the 25 to 45 years old bracket now regularly work more than 60 hours a week. This is significantly higher than the hours contributed in the rest of Europe and impacts greatly on the amount of time that we have available to enjoy life outside of work.

So its not surprising that how we use our free time has also evolved in response to our busier lifestyles. As our available free time has shrunk, our craving for things that make life easier has become almost insatiable. This can be easily observed from the increasing range of ready meals and convenience products on the shelves of our supermarkets all designed around saving time. This trend reflects our desire to make the most of what freetime we have available.

In short, we often end up not giving enough attention to the important but seemingly mundane tasks in order to have time to do the things that we enjoy more. However, some of our day-to-day activities should not be sacrificed in this way, as the consequences can be very costly.