Look, I’m not here to change your mind.
If you think work-life balance is a myth, a trap, or just a clever PR stunt invented by yoga instructors with trust funds… that’s okay. We can still be friends.
Today, I’m just cracking open a curious little side-door into why I personally believe in work-life balance.
So… enjoy?
Let’s start with the obvious:
What is “work-life balance”?
I happen to be writing this email in my local library so just give me a second…I’ll go check some English dictionaries.
Ooops, the dictionaries are all in Polish.
Okay, okay. It’s okay.
Let’s just buckle up and do some real academic research…on the internet.
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[Insert calm waiting music here. The kind they play when you’re waiting 2+ hours for someone working in public services to talk to you]
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Hello, hello…are you still there?
Okay I’ve got something.
One of the most widely used definitions in the research world comes from 3 researchers—Greenhaus (one of the most influential scholars in the field of work-life balance), Collins, and Shaw.
They define work-life balance as:
“The extent to which individuals are equally engaged in—and equally satisfied with—their work role and their family (nonwork) role.”
Hmmmn…simple enough, but also kind of vague.
So let’s break it down further.
What counts as work?
According to researchers, “work” in the work-life balance context is your paid employment role.
Basically, anything you do with the expectation of a salary or paycheck.
So that’s one side of the scale.
Now, the other side… Life.
According to researchers, “life” in the work-life balance context is your “nonwork role.” i.e. family, leisure, personal responsibilities, chasing your kid around the house pretending to be a dinosaur… all the usual suspects.
And now that we’ve gathered all our definitions…let’s talk about the word that seems to drive everyone nuts… BALANCE.
Greenhaus and his colleagues break it down into 3 parts:
- Time balance – how your time is split
- Involvement balance – how mentally/emotionally engaged you are in each domain
- Satisfaction balance – how content you feel with each role
But I think at this stage…I’m starting to lose you—if I haven’t already. So let’s simplify with “YOSI LOGIC”…
When I talk about balance, many people picture an old-school balance scale with 2 pans and conclude that balance must mean a neat little 50/50 time split…
But you’ve got to remember that what balances a scale IS NOT THE SIZE of what you put on each side, IT’S THE WEIGHT.
A giant bag of Lays obviously takes up more space than a small bar of dark chocolate, but put them on a scale and they would balance just fine.
I think that’s what many of us miss… just because work takes up more hours doesn’t mean you can’t have work-life balance.
You get to decide how much weight to give to work and life so the scales balance for you.
That’s why I think work-life “harmony” or “integration” is really just overcomplicating something that is actually simple.
Balance is the clearest word here, and a balance scale is the perfect metaphor.
So now I’ll just leave you with this:
- How much weight do you give to work?
- How much weight do you give to life?
- Are they balanced?
Simple yes or no question.
No need to reply. But maybe sit with it a second.
And because I promised not to convince anyone…
…I’ll resist the urge to end with my 7th grade debate club closer:
With these few points of mine, I hope I’ve been able to convince and not confuse you—
Ooooh, sorry, scratch that.
My bad.
I said no convincing.
When you’re ready here’s how I can help: www.yosianderson.com/
Tp. Tp.
There’s more where that came from!
See, I’ve been writing daily productivity emails for online business owners since November 2024.
And what you just read is barely a scratch on the surface.
The real gems… The fun, insightful, and occasionally absurd behind-the-scenes stories… My best offers… The kind of stuff that makes you go:
“Wait… did that REALLY happen?”
I don’t blast those out to the whole internet.
(Some things… should be kept private.)
But if you want to snoop around… if you want to see what really happens in AYAPYLand…
There’s a door.
And it’s open.
For now.