When it comes to love and career, it’s all too easy to prioritize one over the other. In either scenario, failure to strike a balance between the two could result in putting your relationship or your job in jeopardy. When you put most of your time and energy into your relationship, it could very possibly hinder your productivity at work. Similarly, putting your career first could result in your partner feeling neglected. Our It’s Just Lunch matchmakers have some great advice to help busy professionals strike a balance between their personal and professional life so they can achieve success in both.

If it’s not on your schedule, it’s never going to happen.

If you’re like most busy professionals, you may have forgotten what it means to have personal time because you’ve dedicated any free time you’ve had to growing your career or business. The lines may have even started blurring if your social life revolves around work like it does for most professionals who the majority of their waking days with clients, colleagues and associates.

But, it’s important to block out time for each area of your life in which you’d like to see improvement. Just like you need to put time in at the gym to stay in shape, you have to put time into dating if you have any shot at meeting someone worthy of your time and affections.

Make a commitment to yourself to create opportunities for yourself where you increase your odds of meeting the kind of people you picture yourself with romantically. This could mean attending weekly networking events where other professionals mingle or maybe even joining a book club.

Leave work in the office where it belongs.

This tip works hand-in-hand with the first tip. For the most part, work can and should only be done at work. Maximize your time at work so you can maximize your time outside of work for a more fulfilling personal life.

And try not to let work be all you talk about on a date, because it can be a total turn off and make you seem boring to your date, even if you’re really a fun and adventurous person outside of work.

Shift your priorities in favor of activities that better serve you.

Going to the gym to stay fit is an activity worth keeping on your calendar. Spending time with your closest friends is also important since relationships, in all their varying forms, make the world go round.

However, wasting time binge-watching TV shows, or only hanging out with a small clique of friends is not okay. There are many activities that waste time and energy, and these are among some that should be removed. Analyze how you’re really spending your time and make the changes needed so you can get more focused on your relationship goals.

Be as objective with dating as you are with business.

Too many singles are using work as an excuse for not dating. If that’s the case, then you have no right to complain about your love life if you aren’t doing anything to change it or make it better.

Studies have consistently shown that most people assume they don’t have time because of prior arrangements, but when time is truly broken down, the people who say, “I have too much work to do,” typically spend a majority of their time procrastinating instead.

Stop making excuses for yourself and become as objective with your personal life as you are with business. Set a goal for yourself of meeting at least one new person every week, much like you might set a goal for yourself at work of closing one deal at work every week, and commit to take the steps you need to reach your weekly goals.

In summary, finding balance between love and career is all about segmenting your time, and then using that time to engage in actionable steps that will improve each segment of your life. We’re all busy – but we make time for the things we care about the most.