Having spent a good part of this year looking for a suitable job opportunity, the term “work-life balance” became quite a standard term in my interview parlance. It was one of the things I’d ask potential employers at the interview. What, in their opinion, was the work-life balance like?
The answers, when they came, were vague and sketchy at best. Some rang with hollow promises, others oozed with condescension. I shrugged and barreled on.
My belief was simple. A work-life balance was one of my topmost priorities and I did not hesitate to express that. It simply meant that I was willing to put everything I’ve got into those 8, 9 or even 10 hours at times. 5 days a week. However, when the sun dipped below the horizon, and when the calendar flipped over to a Saturday or Sunday, I did not expect to be found hunched over my laptop, feverishly trying to beat an unreasonable deadline. Over the years, my personal time off has become important to me, almost sacred.
Working hard does not mean working long hours. It is working smart and effectively within normally stipulated work hours. An employer who does not understand that isn’t really worth your while.
I knew I’d found the right match when a potential employer answered my “work-life balance” query with “Your work-life balance here is how you make it to be”.
So true, I thought. The term “work-life balance” is somewhat misleading. Truth is you don’t have a work life and a personal life. You simply have one life – yours. There isn’t this magic mathematical formula for creating the perfect life. Life is what you make of it.
I think we should discard the word “balance”. The important thing about making your one and only life richer and all-encompassing isn’t about maintaining the correct balance. It is really about achieving “congruence”.
When you truly enjoy what you’re doing, it doesn’t seem like work at all. When you live a life doing work that represents the essence of who you really are, when your work is in perfect alignment with your skills and interests, it definitely doesn’t take away from your life. It adds to it. That circles right back around to “loving what you do” as we’ve discussed at Sheroes earlier this year.
There is no tried and tested formula for this “balance” we seek. Congruence is in your hands. Your life is made up of what you put into it and how much.
More work, less family time? Less work, more outdoor hobby time? Equal parts work and personal time? Everyone has got their own preference. It’s like that perfect cuppa. Some people like equal parts sugar and tea, equal parts milk and water, all boiled together. Others brew it with more water, less tea, even less sugar and a dash of milk. Still others like just water and tea. There’s no perfect one-fits-all recipe for that perfect cup of tea. Different strokes for different folks.
That’s exactly how it works with congruence. There’s only one way to achieve it. And that’s your way.