Comments on: The Variable in Work Life Balance

By: sprocket

sprocket — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 14:33:00 +0000

I’m really good at knowing where things are in my house even if I didn’t put them there. I don’t know if it’s because I subconsciously remember where things are when I see them, or if I can unknowingly process the motivations and potential outcomes of my family members. I found a tape measure in the fridge, the cable bill in the garbage, and my daughters doll behind the toilet… and that was the first place I looked.

By: Eliot Jacobsen

Eliot Jacobsen — Tue, 12 May 2009 01:59:10 +0000

The "Variable" for me in work/life balance is Depth. There's only so much time in the day. During some of that I must sleep, eat, dress, and sometimes drive. The balance of time is divided between work, family, service and personal time. Imagine all these as slices of a 24 hour pie. How to make it all fit? Depth. Depth is genuine presence, commitment and connection to the people and task at hand. Often we get so busy that we're flitting across our days like a stone skipping across the water. I saw this in my life and decided to pause and GO DEEP, making each moment meaningful. Suddenly, I wasn't thinking about the next appointment or meeting or how late I was going to be, but rather BEING right there, seeing, connecting, sharing, building, driving, caring, loving. What a difference depth makes.

By: Chris Yeh

Chris Yeh — Thu, 07 May 2009 23:13:41 +0000

Brad,

An excellent insight into balance…ultimately the scope that you consider has an impact.

DaveJ,

It is true that people have weekends, vacations, etc., but what really counts is their own psychology. I know many people who dream wistfully of the day they leave banking or retire. That mindset means their weekends/vacations aren't providing balance.

Balance is subjective, not objective. Each person should seek the rhythm and approach that delivers the best subjective balance for the least objective cost.

By: DaveB

DaveB — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:01:44 +0000

DaveJ has a key point about the vast majority of the workforce having daily periodicity; Fred Wilson's is perhaps even characteristic of a very driven microcosm of the workforce, dedicated to longer hours of fierce intensity. But in an age of technology such as we have, it seems a paradox that such massive amounts of travel – and inherent loss of productivity during travel time – are still the norm for transacting business. Perhaps more extensive (and effective) use of such technologies could be of benefit for both work-life balance and productivity.

By: Perry

Perry — Mon, 04 May 2009 23:19:28 +0000

Time spent on weekends Twittering and Emailing are interesting "conflict fodder" in the balance equation in my experience. As my wife engages more on Facebook and Twitter, I find that the "work time" I spend doing this on weekends is more understood and accepted.

Any suggestions on how to hook her on cap tables and IP agreements

By: Brad Feld

Brad Feld — Mon, 04 May 2009 21:22:07 +0000

“The individual is responsible for ensuring the balance” is a great thing to take from this post (and others that I’ve done on work life balance). Nicely done.

By: Brad Feld

Brad Feld — Mon, 04 May 2009 21:20:05 +0000

Yup – you clearly have a daily rhythm and a weekly rhythm. Now all you’ve got to find is that monthly rhythm.

By: fred wilson

fred wilson — Mon, 04 May 2009 21:03:15 +0000

during the week, i work intensely from 5am to 7pm, then crash, and then do it again every day until friday evening

then i try to work less on the weekends, and sometimes succeed at that

By: Marc Averitt

Marc Averitt — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:12:05 +0000

Brad, always insightful. We actually had courses on work/life balance at Intel and, these days, I find the thought humorous as I keep coming back to the quote: "do something you love to do and you'll never work a day in your life…". I love being a VC and do not consider what I do as work. As for how I balance the 24 hours I get every day, it is a blend of family/friends/fund/other stuff/sleep that I try to mentally track on a daily basis (as hard as that sometimes is). I have found that I can "optimize" my schedule based on how I spend my time on "other stuff" (e.g., eating, reading, exercising, etc.). I try to incorporate family/friends/fund into as much "other stuff" as I can and never have a dull day. Anyway, good to see you in Boston.

By: Brad Feld

Brad Feld — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:59:06 +0000

I don’t think billionaire is the appropriate measurement set. That said, I expect at least three of them (Buffet, Munger, Murdoch) love what they do and how they do it. I don’t know about the other ones. Your comment below is perfect – I hope to also work on things I truly care about and continue to contribute to society until they plant me in the ground.