Go
Home
At our
conferences, we ask everyone to introduce themselves in part by drawing
a picture that represents their life. (Don't scoff - Mike and I did
until we realized how effective this was.) LOTS of people draw
tornados, or see-saws, or something crazy or out of control. They then
tell us they're looking for "balance" between work and family.
There
is none. No balance, ever. Everyone else is NOT doing it better than
you, and you're NOT the only one feeling stressed and worried about
everything, and feeling like you're almost failing at both.
That's
right - there's no "balance." If you're trying to achieve balance,
you're going to fail. Balance isn't the answer. I often share with them
that the best they can hope for is "dynamic tension."
But,
there IS a way to be at peace about the work and family struggle.
(Because that's what folks seeking 'balance' secretly crave - to be at
peace about it.)
Here's
what to do: GO HOME. Stop trying to be make two things balance that
ought NOT to be in "balance." These aren't two equals.... FAMILY IS
MORE IMPORTANT.
So go
home. Decide now, right now, that you are going to actually LIVE your
life the way you SAY you want to. (Or hush about it).
Start
planning your days so that you leave at 6 pm, say. Just go home. And
when you're there... BE there. Sure, maybe a little email after the
kids go to bed, but that's all.
We know
senior SENIOR people who go home at 6. And spend time with their
families. And when they're on vacation, they check in maybe once a day,
but if they miss it, it's not the end of the world. yeah, if their boss
calls, they answer. But they don't stay plugged in.
This is
an important subject, so I'm going to send another note next time,
continuing this thread.
But for
now, trust me, you CAN go home.
Podcast
Awards
We're
proud to announce that Manager Tools has been nominated in the People's
Choice category and both Manager Tools and Career Tools have been
nominated in Business. Thank you to everyone who took the time to
nominate us.
Voting
starts tomorrow, 12 Oct and runs until 27 October. You can vote once
each day at http://podcastawards.com/.
Since Career Tools won last year, we'd
like you to vote for Manager Tools (but please vote for whom you
please).
The
awards are important to us, as they allow us to reach a wider audience
and achieve our mission of changing management. We also know that many
of you vote as a thank you for the podcasts and we are extremely
grateful for that support. Thank YOU.
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