Family Archives - Page 8 of 8

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

Fathers Work Towards Work-Family Balance

According to the same study mentioned in yesterday’s post, fathers have just about tripled the hours that they spend being attentive to their children in the last 40 years (from 2.5 hours per week in 1965 to 7 hours today).

William Doherty, professor of family studies at the University of Minnesota, commented in the washingtonpost.com that “It’s not the case that men are slugs.”

March 28, 2007

Life Balance for Today’s Mothers

A recently released University of Maryland study conducted by Suzanne M. Bianchi, Chairwoman of the Department of Sociology, today’s mothers spend more hours focused on their children than mothers of40 years ago did.

What is especially interesting about this is that mothers of today don’t perceive things that way: Approximately one-half of those interviewed in the study felt that they did not have enough time to spend with their children.

March 27, 2007

Legitimate Distractions Sidetrack Work-Life Balance

I had the opportunity this past weekend to participate in an event that showcased 150 of the local community’s businesses. I met many wonderful people at the show, and for the first time had the occasion to meet husbands and wives attending the venue together.

There was a common theme that seemed to resonate throughout: These partners weren’t satisfied with the balance they were experiencing in their lives. Moreover, there appeared to be a general breakdown in communication between the couples. In fact, legitimate distractions had caused them in many cases to avoid communicating.

March 26, 2007

Work-Life Balance for Empty Nesters

My wife and I became empty-nesters last August when our youngest went off to college, and we’ve been adjusting our balance ever since.

Not being one to always want to have to reinvent the wheel, I asked several friends who had been through this chapter in their lives to share with me what it was like for them and what they had learned. Although the range of experiences was huge, I did garner two consensus opinions: First, that things were strange for a while. Second, that it was a wonderful time for all.

March 20, 2007

March Madness and Work-Life Balance

There’s something about this time of the year that make things very intense, and I don’t mean the wonderful excitement surrounding the NCAA’s college basketball tournament.

Is is just me, or does it seem that most everyone is stretched at this time of the year? Maybe it has something to do with tax time for individuals and businesses.

Possibly it concerns the sheer number of conventions and trade shows that occur between now and the middle of May. Maybe it’s related to the earlier daylight savings time change, spring breaks, the upcoming Easter holiday, and spring fever in general. Maybe it’s simply a cycle of the year in the world in which I operate.

I think the bigger concern we all have is that, because the world now operates at the speed of technology, is that the access we now enjoy to the outside world means that we’re within easy reach of those who wish to contact us no matter where we are and what we’re doing.

March 19, 2007

Overtime vs Family Time

We’ve all been faced with this decision: Should I put in those extra hours in the evening or on the weekends to earn that additional money that will make my family more comfortable or allow us to purchase a few of those not-so-necessary items we’ve wanted?

Terry Cullen discusses that very topic in her Juggle blog in the Wall Street Journal Online. The problem she presents is deciding whether or not to accept offers of overtime for those who are employed and the inherent dilemmas regarding work family balance.

Those of us who are entrepreneurs, small business owners, self-employed, and/or freelance professionals know all too well the mental gymnastics we go through when faced with this issue.

March 15, 2007

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DAVID B. BOHL

Relinquishee, Adoptee, MPE
Author, Speaker.