Expectations Archives - Page 13 of 14

Outsource Your Life Balance?

I wrote a couple of weeks ago back about personal concierge services and how some have billed themselves as an answer to work-life balance. They’re pitching busy people – business owners, executives, working parents, and stay-at-home mothers – on their services.

Their premise isn’t difficult to relate to. We’re all struggling to maintain a balance between our work, family time, personal time, and hours spent with friends and in the community.

The latest pitch I read really got me thinking, however. The promotional copy suggested that we outsource our time. Apparently this would suggest farming out tasks or projects to others to make time for what we like to do, instead of what we have to do. In our instant-gratification society, this may make sense, but it may prove detrimental in the long run.

April 27, 2007

Truth in Posting about Work-Life Balance

The gang over at Trulia Blog get a big thumbs up when it comes to Truth in Posting about their company, its culture, and job opportunities within their company.

Take this declaration for instance, from the “Benefits” section of their “Trulia is Hiring” post:

“We’re big on balance, so we offer a really competitive and comprehensive benefit package – full health coverage… options… European style vacation packages (well…not really European, but better than most start ups)…and, of course, our BOFFI culture.

April 25, 2007

Workaholics vs. Prisoners of Success

Conde Nast, a self-described publisher of several “lifestyle” magazines that include Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Vogue, Wired, Bon Appetit, Architectural Digest, and GQ, recently launched a new business magazine titled Portfolio.

It doesn’t take long to get a feel for the magazine – we’re reminded immediately, and at every turn, that business is about wealth, power, and status, and that we’re expected to aspire to those things.

April 24, 2007

How Does Your Firm’s Work-Life Culture Compare?

Many companies today have recognized their employees’ needs to balance their personal and work lives.

Many employers have responded by creating initiatives that support this awareness by not only offering time off and leaves, as well as child care support and assistance, but making it known that utilizing this time will in no way jeopardize one’s standing at one’s firm.

April 23, 2007

Freelancing as a Way to Achieve Life Balance

Many people who have sought alternatives to the corporate world have pursued professions as freelancers. Working independently on a job-by-job basis does allow freedom and variety to choose one’s projects and hours, but it is not without its risks.

Chief among these hazards are the uncertainty of work (and income)and lack of company infrastructure and benefits.

Wired & Hired blog, a blog written by job recruiters, has two posts on this topic:

April 23, 2007

There IS Work-Life Balance

“I suppose the greatest lesson I learned is how right Socrates was when he said all those years ago that ‘ the unexamined life is not worth living.’ Making the time and taking the effort to think, truly think, about your life is the main battle.

April 20, 2007

How are You doing on your New Year’s Resolution?

According to ACNielson, a global provider of marketing research information services, 56% of people around the world made New Year’s resolutions for 2007.

Of that fifty-six percent, 51% were seeking a better work and life balance (second only to those who wanted to exercise more at 62%).

That means that a full 28% of people around the world are aspiring to lead a more balanced life.

Astonishing, isn’t it?

April 19, 2007

Work-Family Balance and Gender Lines

Courtney E. Martin has an interesting article over at The American Prospect titled “Fighting Apart for Time Together: Why is all the activism for work/life balance split along gender lines?”

Ms. Martin takes the very complicated issue of work-family balance activism and makes it understandable. Here is how the discussion shakes out:

April 18, 2007

How Important is Work-Life in Recruitment?

I spent a little time perusing several of the larger job boards recently and noticed that, no matter the job, there’s an increasing trend to offer a statement about the employer’s dedication to work-life and work-family support of its employees.

This statement sometimes comes in the job description, or is often included in the “about the company” section of the posting, but generally reads like this:

April 18, 2007

Virginia Tech – In Our Thoughts

My PDA phone cashed it in the other day and I had to purchase a new one. I’ve spent several hours over the past 3 days getting up to speed and ensuring that all my data has transfered to the new one. I also played around a bit, much to my wife’s amusement, importing some pictures so that when my wife and kids called, I’d see their smiling faces on my phone’s display.

My daughter is a bit finicky about her photos and didn’t like the one that I chose, so I went to her MySpace page to download one that she had posted, reasoning that she’d obviously given it the thumbs up, and here’s what I found instead:

April 17, 2007

Ethics and Work-Life Balance

According to a survey released yesterday by Deloitte & Touche USA LLP, there is a strong correlation between work-life balance offered and supported by companies and the ethical (or non-ethical) behavior of employees at those companies.

The survey found that:

* 91 percent of all employed adults agreed that workers are more likely to behave ethically at work when they have a good work-life balance.

April 17, 2007

Is Blogging on the Beach a Violation of Work-Life Balance?

That’s what Susie Wee asks over at her HP Research, Technology, & Teamwork blog.

You see, Susie is conflicted – she’s laying on a beach in sunny Hawaii, blogging away, and feeling a little bit guilty that she’s not able to “sit back, relax, and reflect.”

Susie feels that she may be rationalizing things

April 13, 2007

Personal Concierge Services Promise Life Balance

In an earlier post today, I wrote about examining our motives when it comes to buying things – goods and services – to seemingly make our lives easier.

The vicious cycle looks like this: We work hard and long, so we wind up dining out several nights a week, or we hire a service to attend to our lawn or our homes or our pets because we “don’t have enough time.” We rely upon these things, and they become integral to our new budgets. This becomes our new ‘norm.’

We then want still more, so we work even harder, finding ourselves with even less time …. The pattern goes on and on.

April 12, 2007

Engaging in ‘Retail Therapy’ to Achieve Work-Life Balance

Check out this post from A.J. Donnison, “the grumpy developer in the corner: Retail Therapy or Low Self Esteem?

‘Retail Therapy’ refers to something many of us indulge in: the act of buying something to make ourselves feel better after working many long hours. It may seem innocent enough, but, as Adam points out, it might serve us well to examine out motives:

April 12, 2007

My Life Balance

Well, it’s snowing here. I find it extremely ironic that the Cleveland Indians are in town playing ball at Miller Park due to the snow storm in Ohio and because our stadium offers the protection from the elements in the form of its retractable – and close-able – roof.

I’m taking advantage of a canceled appointment or two and some snow closings to share with you some photos I snapped a few moments ago, as well as to let you all know that my life balance/ work-life balance/ work family balance doesn’t consist only of work!

April 11, 2007

Work-Life Considerations for Job Seekers

Work-life balance ranks high on our lists of deciding factors when looking for companies to work for.

What should you look for in a company when Work-Life Balance is at or near the top of your list?

Determine if work-life balance is supported by attitudes and corporate culture at all levels of the organization or is simply a Human Resources department directive.

April 11, 2007

Top 100 Corporate Work-Life Programs

Working Mother magazine has published its list of 100 Best Companies – The Family-Friendliest Companies in America. The list measured 7 areas of the companies’ work-life programs:

April 10, 2007

I Don’t Want To Talk About It

Some of you have noticed that I have posted a book on My Reading List on my Squidoo page Who is David B. Bohl? titled “I Don’t Want To Talk About It: Overcoming the Secret Legacy of Male Depression” by Terrence Real. When I say “noticed”, I mean you’ve wondered to me what that’s all about.

It is true – Dr. Real’s book is about men and depression. But it is so much more. I think the book jacket does a great job when it states: “I Don’t Want To Talk About It offers great wisdom, hope, and practical guidance to men and their families. This is one of the most important and straightforward books ever written about men.”

What I get most from Terrence Real’s book is a person who understands me. If you’ll indulge me for a moment, I’ll explain.

April 4, 2007

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DAVID B. BOHL

Relinquishee, Adoptee, MPE
Author, Speaker.