Work-Life Balance, Anyone?
Opening Arguments
Overexertion is not only the polar opposite of complacency, ill placed satisfaction, and adequacy, it is also the genesis of the cascade that devolves into despondency, questioning self worth capability, and ultimately resignation. The eager soul that strives indefatigably to affect the world about them is acquainted soon enough with forces and circunstances they can neither affect completely nor within a timeframe they would have happen. The only thing worse that consciously weighs heavier on such a soul feeling drained of ambition is that odious overarching element of supervision and authority that imposes the heavy expectation that accelerates the once ambitious person’s relenting.
OVEREXERTION IS NOT THE END BUT A MEANS TO JADEDNESS
Workers, laborers, and professionals rarely lose passion for their professional exploits over time. What is more likely is that the entangled challenges with both human and non-human elements exceed their passions and fervor for the work they do. Picture driving on vacation to a cabin in the mountains—or hills—with uncontainable excitement for a relaxing and exciting weekend with your mates, friends, or companions. Your mind’s eye has naturally reconstructed the scene: rustic exterior, log cabin, logs by the fireplace and logs in the fireplace sizzling crimson with gentle flames warm enough to invite the lot to sit three feet enjoying a classy beverage. In the midst of this foreshadowing halfway to the promised cabin, the weather changes and a thick fog—the kind that forces the use of high beams and a speed of twenty five per hour—falls in front of the driver, you, and your car’s occupants. There are three certainties that will ensue: first, the trip will be slowed considerably, two, emotions like excitement and eagerness will be dampened instantaneously, and the positive decline and negative swelling will be anything but linear. Sigmoidal or quadratic at best. Exponential perhaps, depending on the disposition of the misfortunate horde, and three, there will be little, almost no enjoyment witnessed when they arrive. And that alone will depend on when they arrive.
OH TO FIND BALANCE (AND HOW TO DO IT)
The various facets of our lives tend to complement each other. We would not know how good good is (and it is quite good, depending on what an Economist might be tempted to call marginal goodness) unless we had an objective measure to rate it. And in the absence of an objective measure (and it is absent to the best of my knowledge), we need something contrary to it, something to qualify it. A beautiful sunny day is best experienced after a heavy thunderstorm that lasts just long enough to leave an impression. And in that respect, the sunny day qualifies the dour or perhaps raucous thunderstorm. Both are needed to give a circumspect view or understanding of the weather and our conception of it. Fervent investment in an activity is a virtue fraught with possible loss of focus. It is important ever often to take a step back and appreciate your progress and what contributed to it. Does your vision remain as you perceived it or has it evolved for the better in your professional opinion? And what of the concept of marginal labor? Your productivity decreases slightly with every unit amount of effort you put in to your project or enterprise. Is there a noticeable decrease in output or quality of the project? Could the human element be cause or contributory? In short, do you need to take a break (YOU DO NEED TO TAKE A BREAK, UNEQUIVOCALLY) and reassess your strategy? Finally, ask yourself—must you complete the project at the pace you’re currently on? The finest works and inventions were not completed in a matter of hours. Even their blueprints were revised and re-revised until they were described as unattainable perfection.
IF YOU ARE DESTINED TO ARRIVE, WHY RUSH?
I watched Amadeus, a movie shot in 1984. It was a biography of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart narrated cinematically by his alleged nemesis, the “illustrious” court composer Antonio Salieri who was convinced that Mozart was an element of musical composition perfection bestowed upon the earth by God himself as a living embodiment of that very perfection Salieri desired deeply, devoutly and dutiful. Bt alas, that tenuous talent he would task himself with he claimed was denied and granted to a garish Mozart. But I digress. Legend has it, as per the motion picture, that Mozart envisioned the musical composition’s notes and structure in his head in its entirety. The composition was apparently not trial and error; it was perfection from conception in his mind to scribbling on the staves on the musical sheet. I will not lend credence to unsubstantiated legend but if that were true, it is a truly impressive feat. That said, commendation is often most for the work produced rather than the process taken to produce it. Competitively, it doesn’t matter terribly how many shots you take or attempts you make as long as your team is up at the final score. I’m not certain I’ve heard of an engineering blueprint winning an award at the professional level, at least not without its award winning project. Even then, which of the two gets top props?
Exertion and investment are both essential but so are rest, temperance, and reassessment. An element of balance must be had. Too much rest leads to or is parallel to procrastination. Too much temperance can dampen motivation in those with inadequate discipline.. And excessive reassessment can cause one to lose sight of the original idea and the productive reimagining up to that point. But these contraries weighed upon each other in contiguous harmony are the key to seamless productivity.
AND IN SUMMATION, YOUR HONOR.…
There’s an old adage that goes we work to live, we do not live to work. It’s a great generalization for sure, but bears a tacit wisdom. Your career shouldn’t define you as a person. It ought to be one of your many facets. It’s a bit commonplace to hear someone when asked to respond, “I’m [insert name here] and I’m a doctor/lawyer/mechanic/engineer/dentist/nurse/librarian” ad infinitum. These professions do not in any way, shape, or form describe your personhood. They are an aspect of who you are. Maybe you’re also a homeowner. Definitely part of a family, and what greater calling than that. Maybe you’re a sports enthusiast. Maybe you ascribe to a heterogeneity of hobbies that make you escape categorization. I will invoke that infamous interview question: ‘Tell me about yourself.’ I am dead certain that your response in its entirety will not be career or occupancy based. It is important to embrace the certainty that each of us are multivariate, that is we have many myriad sides to ourselves, and even more that have a potential to transform into part of our identities. I have encountered individuals in the mid ages take up new hobbies like fermenting beer in their garages or begin beekeeping. Of course this is not restricted to mid age, but there are plenty of avenues to invest yourself in. And remember: work is an occupation, not an irrevocable commitment. Accord it the passion, commitment, and dedication it is warranted. But even then, at work day or night’s end, you have a home to go to. Finally, familiarity breeds contempt, as does overcommitment and overexertion. Rather than expect it to unfold, allow it to unfold and the unpredictably cold image shall expand out of your grasping hand and expand into a marvelous reveal, the fruit of your labor made manifest to your utter zest by the sincerest efforts of time and circumstance.
The key is not to push yourself past your capabilities. Nor should you play it overly safe. Strive for a good work-life balance. Work should not be a purpose or calling for the sake of itself.
