Long before cell phones and email, most people did not have the constant connection to work once they left the office for the night or weekend. {Though, I remember my dad always had a briefcase of work he brought home, long before we had a home computer.} Still, when I ran across an article on CNN the other day about the work-life balance in an age of constant contact and high expectations of work bleeding into personal life, it made me think about whether or not the balance between work and life is completely dead.
The article basically confirmed that for most companies, it IS expected that you be available after hours. Calls and emails are the norm. Interestingly, it may be less driven by the actual company and more driven our need to be considered “hard working.” The article stated that “neurologically, certain elements of work can be addictive. Studies have found that satisfying curiosity about a novel event — say, a new and unread email sitting in your inbox — releases dopamine in the brain, which conditions us to check it again and again.” Which I basically interpreted as this might actually kind of be our own faults. Our addiction to our phones and email has led us down a path where work is permitted into personal time, based on our own desire to satisfy “an addiction.”
The author suggested that instead of trying to separate work and life, we need to try to live harmoniously with both of them. He writes, “We live in a world in which it is acceptable for work to interrupt personal time. And yet we’re not as comfortable when personal time interrupts work. Why?” With the exception of the lucky few who get to set their own schedules, most people are subject to face-time at the office. Taking off to run an errand or pick up kids is frowned upon. Yet, companies that do have a more progressive stance on allowing personal life to interfere with working hours, so long as the work gets done, have happier more productive workers, according to studies. In fact, the employees feel more invested in the final product, and profits typically reflect it.
I think feeling stretched too thin is pretty common these days. People put in long hours at the office AND at home, and there just isn’t enough time for them to pursue personal endeavors or get other tasks done. It leaves people strung out. I posted about the importance of breaking from work last year, and I still think it is a much needed shift in our thinking. We can only be so “productive” in a given day. Personal time matters. Balance matters.
What do you think, do we need to find ways to balance work and life more effectively–or do we need to stop whining and put our nose to the grindstone?
~Mavis
Miriam - Starbeamer Patterns says
I think it depends on your job. My husband is a manager at a home care house and he has to be on call 24/7. I work my day job as a software tester and I get to leave my work at work. Of course, one of my important things in looking for a job was to not bring it home.
Jennifer says
We have people here at work who feel it will help them get ahead and look important if they’re taking their cell phones home, if they answer emails while out of the office and on vacation. It does work, management knows these people are willing to give up part of their personal lives to “be important” and get ahead. Maybe if I was doing a job I loved I wouldn’t mind, but I’m not, so I resent them trying to contact me at home on my own time.
Lori says
I work for a major software company. They pretty much just quit calling it work-life balance; it’s called work-life integration–which is much more suitable.
We roll with it.
Lynne says
Since I work for the federal government and we all know how much Congress budgeted in for that expenditure, I’d say they don’t want to pay me anymore than they have to, so the balance between the two is great. Unfortunately, the work that needs to get done truly never does thanks to the budget…
Lisa says
I think it depends on the person and the job itself, but I know my preference is to work while I am at the office and to live my life while I am at home and my job allows me to do that 🙂
Lisa Millar says
I know its each to their own, and what works best… etc.
But I do feel its sad when I see people on holidays, sorting work emails and calls and whatever else they think is nec. while they are away from the office.
Generally people don’t seem to know how to ‘unplug’
Since our ‘country move’ I don’t work, (you know – except for the garden, chickens and making things from the garden and chickens! lol) and my husband works part time, we don’t have a mobile (cell) phone and when we go away… we REALLY get away… we are not at the beck and call of anyone else. It’s really lovely. We truly have enjoyed living a lifestyle that is not all about working for other people.
I did own a business and I was very strict about not calling my staff at home on their days off unless it was an absolute emergency. If I didn’t provide enough time for work to be done during their paid hours, I don’t see why I should expect them to be thinking about my business in their free time.
Mavis Butterfield says
All excellent points! 🙂
Andi says
I’m the office admin at a church with seven pastors. Not your standard business office. Mondays the office is closed to be a true day off for everyone, since Sunday obviously isn’t. We are all connected by email and texting, but protect each other from overload in all forms. In fact, they kicked me out of the office at noon today. 🙂