London is one of the most exciting cities in the world. Whatever your passion in life, London can feed it with some of the best fuel in the world. If you love theatre, London has not just a thriving West End scene, but also exciting studio theatres, and opportunities to get onto the Fringe theatre scene yourself! If you’re there to boost your professional profile, London is a crucible environment for lots of different industries, from retail to fintech startups. A move to London puts you within reach of a dozen jobs that could be your next big leap forward!
It’s a city that serves you up so many options for a weekend or a night out that it can be difficult to decide what to do – choice paralysis is a real phenomenon! Fortunately, we’re here to help you with some tactics that will help you lead your London life to the full.
Balance
Maintaining a work/life balance is one of the most important things you can do as a new Londoner. You’ll be eager to prove yourself in a new job (possibly your first job on a career track you really want to pursue), but burning out early isn’t going to impress anyone. Working smart, rather than simply hard will get you better results for longer.
Work and life aren’t the only two forces you need to balance. The temptation will be, in your downtime, to rush around town, leaping on every opportunity, seeing every show, dancing in every club, eating in every restaurant. This is another recipe for burnout. You need to find the right balance that lets you feel you’re taking advantage of all the opportunities London offers you while still getting that all-important time to rest.
Making Self-Care a Priority
One of the ways you can find a healthier, more sustainable balance is by making self-care one of the opportunities you’re so excited to explore! Skipping one night out to sample some of the restorative treatments one of Skinsmith’s Skin Clinic London locations instead of a Soho cocktail bar will leave you feeling a little bit more rested and ready to face a packed weekend.
Prioritising
Simply agreeing to every possible suggestion, invitation and curious inclination to try a new venue, restaurant or opportunity will leave you exhausted, and not necessarily happy with the experiences you have as a result! Applying some priorities beyond simply doing something new will help you winnow the possibilities down to those you are most likely to enjoy and give you more time to enjoy them!
Consider if there’s a time limit involved – a pop up that’s due to close or a play with a limited run need to go the top of your list because you have less time to fit them in. Anything without a built-in expiry date deserves careful thought: what do you expect to get out of the experience and how important is that to you?
Applying some critical thought to the opportunities in front of you, and building in time for rest and self-care mean you’ll get to enjoy London for as long as you like, not burn out too soon.