The pandemic has prompted many British workers to reassess their priorities, with almost half wanting a better work-life balance post lockdown.

Working overtime during the pandemic seemed to have been a key driver of the desire for a more balanced lifestyle sought by 45% of 1,000 respondents to a comparethemarket.com survey carried out in March.

On average, the study found that Brits had worked 2.9 hours more than their contracted hours during lockdown, adding up to 150 extra hours over the past year.

Those aged 25-34 had worked the most overtime at 187 hours, followed by 18-24 year olds and 35-44 year olds, both at 182 hours.

This unpaid work had the biggest impact on those aged 18 to 24, with 56.9% of respondents in that age group saying it had helped them realise they wanted to fulfil their career aspirations after the lockdown had ended.

This same demographic was also most likely (55%) to have put together their first ‘bucket list’ during lockdown, with plans to ‘start living life to the full’ (44%) post-lockdown.

Across all age groups, more than a third (36%) of Brits started planning their bucket list during lockdown, with more than half (57%) claiming their motivation for doing so was due to an attitude that ‘life is too short’.

Topping the activities on bucket lists drawn up over the past year was travelling and seeing more of the world, with 59% of respondents listing this.

Making more time for family and friends came in second (44%) while 41% wanted to learn a new skill such as a new language or a musical instrument.

Other bucket list items that scored highly included buying a new home (36%), doing an adrenaline-seeking activity (35%) and having more ‘me time’ (32%).

A third or those surveyed were hoping to achieve their goal within the next five to 10 years, while 26% hoped to do so in the next one to five years.

Photo courtesy of Canva.com