"WoRk LiFe BaLaNcE"

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    I have seen this idea of a "work-life balance" everywhere. Why did I choose Dr. Evil to represent this post? Because this is literally how I feel about it. Everyone can talk about it all they want, I want to see proof of someone doing it long-term, successfully, while working for a large corporation.

    It's kind of like the idea that multitasking creates more success because you are getting more done in less time. I believe this in incorrect because the way I see it, no one can truly focus on two things at one time. Go ahead and try to wash knives in the dishes while watching your kid show you their newest talent..don't actually do that..but it's not going to work! You will more than likely get hurt, and the kid will be upset that they aren't getting your full attention for their "look what I can do," Stuart from SNL, shining star moment. It's "task-switching." Quickly going from one thing to the next.

    I have tried to embrace this idea at different periods in my life: high school, undergraduate school, graduate school, and now in the workforce. My brain does not work like that. I need to fully focus on one thing at a time, which is why I love the idea of Mindfulness so much (more posts to come about that). If your brain can switch back and forth between tasks quickly, awesome, great, I am happy for you! For those of us that cannot...what do we do?

    Well, what I have been doing is forcing myself to switch back and forth to keep up with the demands of school, jobs, and even society in general. So far, this has only caused me to feel even more stressed, get less done because I am wasting time stressing, and doing poorly on the tasks because I was too stressed to focus while I was doing it. Insert ✨burnout✨ here. I need something else. I need to try something different.

    Perhaps using compartmentalization will help? For example, when at work I do not address at home issues, and while at home I do not address at work issues. If only life worked like that and nothing happened in your personal life while on the clock, and if only companies followed and encouraged this. If I try that, I will be working against the current culture that exists, which feels like it is going to be a lot harder than just going with the flow (or freefall, really) like I always have. Again...I need to do something different, so I will give it a try. 

    I am curious though, about others' take on the idea of "work-life" balance. What about those of you that work from home? I do that sometimes with my job and boy-oh-boy do the boundary lines get blurry. Anyone out there have a fresh take on it? Any tips or tricks you have found work for you? I plan to do more research and trial-and-error in my own life and I will keep you all posted on what I find.

    The hardest part for me is, how do I make changes like this, set strong boundaries, when I am so fresh in the field and this is the opposite of the current work culture. I have already had some confused responses when I say that I will respond to emails I get at the end of the last day in my work-week, the following week. This will not stop me, because setting boundaries is what allows me to be my best self for my clients. It doesn't matter how large the corporation is or whether or not the employees are salaried; every employee has a right to have boundaries, a voice, a life.

Let me know in the comments how you feel and what insights you can share! Thanks for reading.