I’m having one of those grinding, despair-inducing weeks that consist of little more than proofreading, restless and unsatisfying sleep, and numbly shoveling food into my mouth without tasting it. Late nights, impossible deadlines, not enough hands around the agency to manage the volume of work, neglected chores and personal projects at home, and the bleak feeling that I’ve somehow lost sight of whatever my “real” life was supposed to be… you get the idea.
At times like this, when daydreams of walking away from everything and hitting the open road with nothing but a dufflebag at my side like Bill Bixby in The Incredible Hulk are occurring more and more frequently — like, every 45 seconds or so — I can’t help but wonder how in the hell people with families can tolerate the demands of the modern workplace. I know many of my coworkers have spouses and kids. If I’m feeling antsy about missing out on the life part of the work-life balance, what sort of torment are they enduring?
In any event, my agenda is crowded enough that I may not manage to get a Friday Evening Video up today, and I really doubt that I’ll be managing anything of actual substance for awhile, either. And yes, I am deeply frustrated by that, thanks for asking.
In the meantime, let’s all take a moment to enjoy a vintage photo of the lovely Bettie Page, shall we?
Work / life balance is just that. Balance. And to me, there is no torment. 🙂
I’m always careful to remind myself that work/life balance isn’t something you have to do each day or each week. It’s a long-term thing.
There are days/weeks where I feel like you do now – working all the time, mentally at work, even when I’m home, etc.. The wife and kids understand when that happens, specifically because I’m careful to detach from work when things *aren’t* so busy.
It’s very easy to convince yourself that you’re busy at work 24/7/365, and to feel guilty when you knock off early to catch a Little League game (or a Rick Springfield concert) or whatever. At times like those, I remind myself of times like these, when I really am on call all day & night. Then I don’t feel so guilty.
Ergo: Balance.
🙂 – Well put, Brian.