The following is a guest post by Anthony Garcia from OnlineGraduatePrograms.com.

In today’s world, many people are finding themselves working more and more hours, but not spending much time actually enjoying life. Luckily, if you want to change that pattern, there are several things you can do to realign your life and spend less time working and more time living.

Change Your Perception of “Work”

For many people work is not necessarily something they enjoy or are passionate about. Work often feels like chore that prevents them from getting involved with the things that interests them. However, if you are doing something you love, it no longer is “work” and instead becomes something that you really enjoy and lose yourself in. For example, if you absolutely love writing, writing for a living is no longer a just a job, but can feel like more like a hobby or an exercise in doing something you enjoy.

Thus, if you find yourself dreading going to work every morning, it might be time to reevaluate your career path to find employment doing something you love and are passionate about. As an article posted on Online Graduate Programs explains, the New York Times suggests that graduate school is a great way to reinvent yourself, as it will provide you with the necessary skills to explore a new avenue as well as help connect you with alumni and professionals working in the field. However, before committing to going back to school, it’s important to consider how much time and money you will need to invest, and whether the program will allow you to shift to a career that you will really enjoy.

Limit Your Availability

According to the Mayo Clinic, stress levels are at all-time high for many people. However, there are a number of ways to reduce your stress levels and refocus your attention on doing things you enjoy. One way to minimize your stress is to eliminate interruptions. For example, inform your co-workers that you will only be available for email, instant messages or cell phone calls at certain times each day. As result, you’ll be able to reduce the number of times you are side tracked by responding to miscellaneous messages. This will allow you to stay focused and get more accomplished during your work hours.

Manage Your Priorities

These days most people are bombarded with technology on a daily basis, making it easy to get overwhelmed with all the distractions. However, one way to stay focused is to be very targeted in what you place on your priority list. When making your list, use the old fashioned method of writing down your priorities rather than using an electronic tool, such as a PDA. Although PDA’s and the like are great tools, the disadvantage of using electronic time management tools is that you can continue adding tasks endlessly with little limitation. By writing things down, you can see it in front of you and will automatically limit yourself to what is reasonable.

Additionally, by thinking carefully about whether or not something really needs to be done that day, you are more likely to only put things on it that can actually be accomplished. This will help keep your daily “to do” list reasonably short (try to limit it to three or four items), preventing you from feeling overwhelmed.

Delegate and Outsource

One way to work less and have more time for living is to delegate and outsource activities that can be done by others. While many people think of outsourcing as a bad thing, it can actually be a good approach to managing your work activities. For example, if someone else can answer emails for you, it will free up your time to do work on other projects.

Outsourcing is also a way to expand your global perception and social responsibility. If you have your own business, you may be able to affordably outsource business activities such as content writing, appointment scheduling or answering emails. This can provide work and support for people who might not otherwise be able to support themselves or their families.

Control Your Environment

Finally, one of the best ways to reduce the amount of time you spend working is to control your environment. You can accomplish this goal by limiting your access to wireless technology or other things that constantly interrupt your thoughts and work flow. By focusing your attention, you will discover that you are more productive and able to accomplish more in a shorter amount of time.

Ultimately, by working more efficiently and productively you will be able to spend less time on work activities and more time on doing things you love. If you are already doing what you love and are passionate about, then you may not feel like you are working at all. With less interruptions and more focused attention, you can turn your time toward other priorities of your life, like your family and favorite past times.

Anthony recently completed an online graduate program in English Literature. A New Mexico native, he currently resides and writes in Seattle, Washington. He writes primarily about education, travel, literature, and American culture.

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