Guilt is a moral compass – not a tool for accepting defeat, and work life balance doesn’t exist – so stop trying. These were my two personal takeaways from Kelly Crace’s Flourishing with Values-Based Leadership seminar I recently had the opportunity to attend.
Let’s start with guilt…we all feel it. As busy professionals trying to raise families and be superheroes, guilt can engulf every activity of every day. Are you spending the morning at your child’s school? You should be working. Are you working late on a critical project? You should be home with your kids. Maybe you know someone who uses guilt as a tool to persuade you to do something. Or maybe you guilt yourself by constantly thinking about what you could be or should be doing. This type of guilt is nothing new, but for those of us carrying hat racks on our shoulders, there is hope. Work life balance has been a hot topic for Americans for decades, but work hard, play hard is the balance we should be striving to achieve – no matter how many hours are spent on each. Melissa Milkie reported in her Journal of Marriage and Family (2015) study that quality, not quantity, is what counts in regards to spending time with your children. Does this mean you can stay late at the office if you take your kids to the park for an evening picnic afterwards? That’s my interpretation of the findings. If that’s the case with kids, it seems appropriate (and obvious) that the effort you put into your work, not the hours you spend at your desk, would be a determining factor of career success. One of Value Added Packaging’s core values is Integrity, and the key components of that are holding oneself accountable, keeping commitments and delivering on promises to exceed expectations. So many times, tasks are put off at home and at work simply because the motivation to do them is lacking. However, getting them done quickly and efficiently means you can spend more time focusing on something enjoyable and less time making excuses about why that task is still on your to do list.
So, work late if it’s necessary and don’t be afraid to disconnect your work email from your phone on the weekend. If something is urgent, someone will find a way to contact you. Work hard, recharge, repeat, and love every minute of it. It will be good for you and for everyone in your life.