I recently read an article on LinkedIn that stated work-life balance in 2018 is dead.

Uh, I call bullshit.

Work-life balance IS a tricky thing to master, I will admit that. But, to simply say it’s dead and not conceivable to balance is ignorant. We as Americans like to show off our materialistic earnings and the best way for us to earn money is to work hard and work long hours. Simple math, right?

While it is just my opinion, I think there is some truth to the fact that Americans in particular like nice and expensive things, and that American culture has led to this toxic lifestyle where employees feel they need to work 50-80 hours a week or else they will lose their job.

It’s ridiculous! And it’s certainly not an efficient lifestyle. There is a difference between being productive and being efficient. If I can get the results I need/want in half the time as someone else then I am working SMARTer, not HARDer. Why should I sit around banging my head against the wall when I could be out of the office (virtual or not) experiencing EVERYTHING ELSE life has to offer?

I’m sorry, but where along the evolution of human beings did we collectively decide the life=work?

I know work-life is something I’ve personally struggled with, as I try to toe the line between efficiently building my career and not missing out on the wonderful opportunities of my personal life. For a long time, I thought what I did as a professional should define who I was as a person.

It’s really quite a natural way to think because we are conditioned from such an early age to assess our personal success with “what we want to be when we grow up”. How many times did you have to answer that question in school? When we are younger, we don’t have a full understanding of the responsibilities of life, so we blurt out things like a firefighter, an actress, and for me, it was always “shortstop for the New York Yankees”. As we grow older we realize a lot of aspirations we had as a child aren’t quite as practical as we once imagined them to be.

And that’s really sad.

I physically wasn’t big enough to play professional sports of any kind. Sometimes there are actual roadblocks on our way to making our dreams reality. That’s okay. What’s not okay is giving up on the things that make our life complete and whole. If you really stop to think about it, the things you loved as a child are probably still things you love today. And those are the things we can fill our time outside of work with - it doesn’t have to exclusively always be “Netflix and Chill”.

Too often, we let “life” get in the way of how we really want to live. We let the 9-5 grind get in the way. We make excuses. We grow old. We become overweight. And before we know it we have true regrets in life.

Don’t be that person!

I know there are probably a lot of you that need to work full-time hours to provide for your family, pay mortgages, buy groceries, etc. Working less is simply not an option. That’s fine - I’m not asking you to quit your job and become a free-spirited know-it-all that lives better than most. What I am asking of you is to truly take some time to look at the balance between your life and work.

Don’t let work define you. You can LOVE what you do, and that’s okay too, but you should never let your work stand in the way of being a better son or daughter, a better brother or sister, a better mom or dad, or a better husband or wife. Work should NEVER stand in the way of you being a better person and being selfish to enjoy YOUR life.

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Another article I read recently talked about a work-life balance policy for a sales rep at a company called Womply. Here is an excerpt:

They say "time is money." It couldn't be truer for sales reps ... and not in a good way.

The fact is, top reps - and so many others - are failing to take proper time away from sales, in fear of losing commissions, status, etc... And this is bad for the employee and the company. Productivity suffers. Health suffers. Marriages suffer.

At Womply, we've solved that problem with what I call "Real PTO."

In summary, any time a rep (min 6 mos tenure) takes a vacation of at least 3 days we not only give them standard PTO, but also credit them the exact number of sales they would usually make over the course of those days. We base the average off the previous 3 completed months. So, the rep not only gets to take a well-deserved break, but also has no fear of missing commissions, quotas, losing status, etc...

Of course, as a company, we'll see the benefit of happy, rested employees. We'll also see reps work extra hard in the 90 days prior in order to pad their averages. And, we'll see absolutely no reduction in productivity in the month they take their vacations.

This excerpt proves that it’s not only in the best interest of people to have a better work-life balance, but it’s also in the best interest of the employer. So, employers, let’s stop putting ALL the pressure on employees to perform and try to figure out their work-life balance. Implementing innovative ideas like Womply did can drive production while also encouraging people to improve the balance in their lives.

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Finally, I had the pleasure to talk a little with Kelly Kinahan (you can follow her on LinkedIn!) on the topic of work-life balance. Here’s what she had to say:

I will start off by admitting that I have allowed my career to define me which I think a lot of people do/have done. Personally, over the past couple years I've been working on "finding myself" and recently I have been mentoring young women/students as well as professionals starting their own business. The advice I give based on my lessons learned is you MUST make time for yourself. It's easy to work all the time and to push off time with family or friends, or postpone that run/workout because of a deadline. And yes, on occasion you may have to do that, but when you sit back and look at the big picture we MUST take care of ourselves first in order to be productive at work, to be a better parent, to be a loving spouse, and to be a good friend.

Ask “what do I need for myself?” That answer may be less stress or quiet time. Whatever the answer then determines what you need to do to get that. Is it 30 minutes to read fiction and escape, or a self-help book to help get your business off the ground, a good run, a yoga class, or even trying something "new" just because you've always wanted to. It is also important to embrace the journey. And what you may need today may change tomorrow. Trust yourself and listen to yourself!

I think when we actually take care of ourselves we are better able to care for others personally and professionally. My father gave me this advice about 10 years ago during a difficult time in my life. My goal was to be the best mother (single mother) after going through a divorce. He said, "Kelly, IF you truly want to be there for your daughter you MUST put yourself first and take care of yourself or you will not be able to care for her." He was right. And I am sharing his advice because I have been trying to do that the past 10 years personally and finally this year I am applying it professionally as well. Both do go hand in hand as we all juggle the work/life balance!

What are some ways you've been able to strike a better balance between work and life? Feel free to leave comments and suggestions below!