Thriving @ Work
Escape the Fractured Life: Proven Strategies to Simplify Your Schedule
Are you juggling back-to-back meetings at work and demanding home commitments and not doing either very well?
Fractured refers to something that is fragmented into parts, often indicating a state of disunity, disruption, or incompleteness.
My Personal + Professional Lives Are Fractured
Are you like me? From dawn till twenty-three minutes past dark, my day unfolds as a relentless digital dance.
On average, I have eight half-hour meetings and about four hour-long meetings throughout my schedule. Then, throughout the day, a ceaseless barrage of about seventy-nine Slack messages across twenty-seven channels, more than forty-seven emails, several manager’s calls to my work and personal cells, SVP’s texts, and Zoom chats on various topics, forming a cacophony of connectivity that I not-so-adeptly navigate.
Amidst this flurry, I awkwardly shift between virtual conversations, urgent demands, and strategic decisions while striving to maintain my professional poise.
Unscheduled and ever-present, my thoughts wander toward the personal: I have to book my annual mammogram, I remind myself. The approaching start of my son’s college journey prompts me to schedule his eye appointment for new glasses. Add creamer to the grocery list, I note. The call I owe a friend tugs at my consciousness, their message echoing as I wish I were faster to honor my commitment. Request vacation, book Trinidad ticket, I mentally check off, determined to secure family time amid the flurry. I should call my older son; just because he’s wonderfully independent does not mean he doesn’t want to hear from me. Even mundane chores like laundry find a place in my mental checklist.
Just as I join my second-to-last meeting, a text from my husband interrupts, a simple “What’s for dinner?”
Work-Life Balance
The goal I had heard over many years was to achieve a work-life balance.
But, even as early as 1997, Paula Caproni contended that work/life balance, though well-intentioned, undermines people’s efforts to lead fulfilling lives. In her article in The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, she drew on feminist and critical viewpoints and personal experiences to illustrate how the discourse reflects individualism and achievement focus, potentially trapping individuals in the imbalance they seek to escape (Source: Work/Life Balance: You Can’t Get There From Here).
Twenty-eight years after Caproni shared her research, many professionals described their jobs as “highly demanding, exhausting, and chaotic, and they seemed to take for granted that working long hours was necessary for their professional success” (Source: Harvard Business Review). In that 2021 article, Ioana Lupu and Mayra Ruiz-Castro proposed “Work-Life Balance Is a Cycle, Not an Achievement.” These professors study various work-related topics.
They suggest continually reflecting on stressors and recognizing priorities. The process involves reflecting on personal and professional changes that may require making sacrifices and trying new things. This holistic strategy aims to counterbalance the pervasive pressures of modern work culture and foster more fulfilling lives.
It sounds good, but I’m afraid there’s no time in my schedule to do this as a recurring activity. Excuse me while I join this call…
Work-Life Integration
In any event, there is a new buzz term: I should aim for work-life integration.
After hearing the reference in a recent work town hall, I found an article by Maggie Wooll of Betterup. She says work-life integration involves merging work and personal life. The process accommodates both aspects, fostering fulfillment. The approach entails effectively coordinating work and personal responsibilities for increased productivity and satisfaction. It isn’t about an ideal equilibrium but a personalized balance that evolves with circumstances, emphasizing flexibility and adaptability to changing needs (Source: BetterUp Blog).
I found a particular section of Wooll’s article very relatable — the tips for leaders to achieve work-life integration were extremely helpful!
Wooll shares that to achieve effective work-life integration, I should:
- Disregard guilt or perfectionism tendencies, understanding that overworking leads to burnout.
- Flex my schedule to accommodate unexpected tasks alongside daily responsibilities.
- Prioritize and delegate multiple tasks, enabling focus on crucial duties and freeing personal time.
- Merge the lists! Integrate the to-do lists to incorporate and manage both professional and personal commitments.
- Take regular breaks to recharge my mental well-being, fostering clearer thinking, improved decision-making, and enhanced leadership qualities.
I can do these things!!!!! And I’ve started. I recall/edit one or more of the prompts above as I go along, making small changes during each day. In a subsequent post, I’ll share how it’s going.
Mending My (One) Fractured Life
“Sometimes the smallest step in the right direction ends up being the biggest step of your life. Tip toe if you must, but take the step.” Naeem Callaway
Folks, navigating the currents of an interconnected and demanding world, the quest for work-life balance has transformed into the art of work-life integration. Amidst a whirlwind of tasks, I’ve realized the need for simplification and harmony.
I’m going through this ever-changing life with renewed purpose and strategy by letting go of guilt, being flexible, prioritizing, merging responsibilities, and taking breaks.
Tell me, how do you accomplish peace and joy as you do all you need to do?
© 2022 K. Joseph. All rights reserved
Postscript
I’ve scheduled my vacation!
- I have yet to finalize the plans for the Trini trip, but I’ve already arranged a shorter excursion to Washington, DC, with my son. This getaway holds special significance as he prepares to embark on his college journey. I feel a sense of accomplishment and pride as I step forward and spend more time with my family.
Working Moms Have A Harder Time Finding Balance and Integration
- Tracey Tee states, “Moms don’t get the opportunity that many other people do. We don’t get to go to…yoga retreats. Our healing comes between car lines, doctor visits, ballet practice, and homework.” Source.
I stumbled upon an insightful article in Medium’s Modern Women publication that provided insights on alternative tactics for moms — we need it!
“Moms are overworked, overwhelmed, and overstretched.” June Kirri.
The writer, June Kirri, correctly says, “We (moms) no longer have a village to raise our kids. If we’re lucky, we have a partner, and it’s like winning a lottery if we have our parents helping us out.”
Kirri shares insights like:
- In a traditional household dynamic, women, particularly mothers, disproportionately shoulder the burden of housework and childcare responsibilities compared to men, even when their husbands are unemployed.
- Although a mother may be a primary breadwinner and handle household duties while enduring a long commute, it is concerning to characterize her husband’s involvement as mere “help.”
- This highlights the importance of addressing the unequal distribution of domestic responsibilities.
Read her whole article here; she offers an exciting option to work/life integration that is medicinal.
Brown Women Have A Harder Time Finding Balance and Integration
According to Writer on Medium, “Despite the expanding conversation on gender equality and balancing life with a job, the particular difficulties faced by women of color, and brown women’s struggle get lost in larger storylines” Source.
꧁༒☬T͎h͎a͎n͎k͎ ͎y͎o͎u͎ ͎f͎o͎r͎ ͎r͎e͎a͎d͎i͎n͎g͎!͎☬༒꧂
About K. Joseph
Every day, organizations need to change (e.g., by introducing new technology, improving an existing process, implementing continuous improvement culture, or restructuring operations). However, the biggest challenge firms face is overcoming resistance and hastening adoption across the business to achieve the intended outcomes.
This is where I come in. I develop change strategies using Prosci principles, build solid multinational teams of change managers, and create the required accompanying management training programs. What’s more, I demonstrate how companies accomplish measurably higher ROI faster when implementing solutions with a well-engaged workforce.
I write creative non-fiction stories on Medium to share change management insights, learn leadership principles, and grow together in our workspaces. Follow. Subscribe. Clap. Comment.
