Or….when work-life balance doesn’t balance
I have a good friend – let’s call him Andrew. He’s been self employed for maybe 15 years now in a creative and demanding profession he has always loved, and is extremely talented at. He is currently going through what is probably the worst case of burn out I’ve ever seen.
Andrew doesn’t refuse any work that comes his way. He’s at his laptop at 6am, and rarely stops before 11pm. I knew he’d hit rock bottom the other day when he said simply, “I hate my work”.
We’ve all read about the concept of work-life balance. I hold the view that there are times that one or the other dominate, but in the long run, balance out.
There are some warning signs when this is seriously out of whack:
- Illness which takes longer than it should to recover
- Detachment from family to the point of damaging relationships
- Inability to switch off and relax
Being able to switch off and relax can trigger more creativity and ultimately lead to higher productivity – so the next time you think of spending an extra few hours on a task, ask yourself – are you really working at your best?
Sadly, I doubt Andrew will ever change.