Memoirs Q38: What are your views on the Balance between Work and Personal Life?

Work-Life balance is important for me. For example, I don't want to be part of work that demands too much time of me so as for me to have no time at all to share with my family. Even if it's an uneventul weekend at home, the point is it's a break from the office. It was a chance for me to bond with my family. I wouldn't want to be too busy to skip important events like birthdays, Parent-Teacher meets, my kids extra-curricular activities, campings wehre I agreed to be a parent chaperone, family vacations. Family time was precious to me.



"Me time" is also important - so I don't mind staying in a quiet place to read a book, or listen to music.

But if a real need to spend more work time is needed, I don't mind putting the extra hours, so long as I'm given enough warning that such will be needed. Likewise I try to resepct my people's personal time. I don't impose on them. But should hte need arise, I do ask for their understanding. Ironically, in Fujitsu, my team loved doing overtime - the work was a lot, so we avoided getting work piled up. I'm sure my people didn't mind the overtime pay either... but there was one time I asked them to take a break - let them enjoy the weekend with their respective families or friends. Why? Because I know that even if they did not see it, they needed to rest.

So yes, I wouldn't mind spending more time at work, but we need to watch our health. We need to keep our familiar relationships strong, specially with kids. After all, we can't tell them we love them in absentia. Too many broken homes have kids going astray because the parents were never around to help, ro even just talk with them.

To summarize, work is needed - but not to the point of sacrificing health, family and sanity. We need to take breaks, so we can recharge.