Work-Life Balance: Be flexible or be dead
by Andrea Jones
I often get asked about my work-life balance, as a female entrepreneur managing 6-year-old twins, a 2-year-old, and a couple of adorable Boston Terriers. I often say, “I don’t feel I do it very well. My house is a mess and I don’t remember the last time I walked my dogs.” Well, how’s that for a shitty response? Alternatively, I could say, “I wake up, drink my kick ass potion called coffee and make magic happen.” The truth is, some days I feel like the former and some days, it’s the latter. Both are wholly who I am and I do it my way, because as Dr. Seuss says, “everybody else is already taken.”
When I’m in the “let’s work on me mode,” I occasionally read or listen to what super insightful people have to say on the subject. For example, one person asked that I consider the work-life balance conundrum as five balls: Work, Health, Friends, Family, and Spirit. I read this and think- “That’s FIVE balls I have to think about!” Five balls of guilt should you drop one is how I see it. And I don’t know how to juggle so that’s too much to wrap my brain around.
I use many tricks during the day to stay sane and efficient but these are my top three hacks for managing work-life balance, which I prefer to view as work-life flexibility because there is so much out of your control. If you aren’t flexible, you may as well be dead. By dead, I mean stressed, the leading cause of death*.
- Set time for your passions. For me it’s marathon training. That’s the one that I’ve set time aside for this year anyway. In recent years, it’s been things like make a baby, have a baby, help launch Alchemy. Marathon training grants me a lot of “me” time because long runs. Massages. Chiropractic appointments. Homeopath appointments. You know, all the things that keep this late 30’s body from decaying but it’s SO worth it.
- Define what success will look for you at the start of each day. I am a big fan of the Five Minute Journal and it comes down to this: I wake up and say, I will *insert goal* that is achievable. Start small or go big but get it done. Over a week, some items might come up time and again that might not get done. That’s okay too. This is where the progress over perfection idea hits home. I may decide to not unpack from a beach trip for a few weeks, or return library books for a half year. Every Wednesday though, the kids collect the items they’ve recycled, bring them out to the curb and wave to the recycle truck when it goes by. At the end of the day, I rattle off my successes and call it a day. You can’t win them all, but you can get damn close some days. Especially Wednesdays. Wednesdays are good.
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Thanks to Facebook, I just found a babysitter this weekend in under an hour because my crazy husband booked a last minute trip and I have 2 work events. (See above, be flexible or be dead.) Thanks to an amazing support group at Brasa, Union Fitness, Alchemy and everyone in between, I can bring my children to my favorite places and someone is bound to keep them alive if I walk away. It really does take a village and I really cherish the one I’ve got.
*According to the American Psychological Association, chronic stress is linked to the six leading causes of death: heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver and suicide.
Andrea Jones is a coach and founder of Union Fitness and Alchemy. In her spare time, you can find her sipping a Brasa Breeze.
