In the area of disruptions, my experience is different than the norm. For many in the Pandemic the scales tipped either to tremendous over work or no work, Meanwhile, I fell squarely into balance. Some of my business dropped, while other clients picked up slack. And remaining slack filled with organizing remote learning and household chores. You see, mid 2020 my husband started a new job accelerating our re-balancing act. Now as the more flexible parent, I’ve picked up more shuttling, shopping and preparing meals. I recall a comment from a close friend upon observing our recycle bins laying at the curb... "I think that’s in your department now". And so began the dawning of my transformation, which is coincidently the source of many new opportunities.
So what's new? Well dinnertime for one! It's always interesting to see the flops like spaghetti pie, and successes like coconut-curry chicken, fast enchiladas and lettuce wraps. Plus we still enjoy my husband's dinner when I punt... like meatloaf, burritos and BBQ. What I’ve learned is
There’s no “thankless job", if you remember to stop and be thankful.
In truth, my re-balancing began in 2016 with the launch of my company. Prior to that, I found that my pendulum had swung squarely to work to the detriment of life. It was small moves like getting Ollie (our king Charles Cavalier) in 2018 that began re-balancing act. I followed the lead of my former co-worker. I noticed she was hard to find a 3 o’clock each day and discovered that was her time to walk her cavalier. Now, I get outside for a walk once a day.
In the area of opportunities, my deep experience working in digital & virtual environments allowed me to help others transition during Pandemic. This included transitioning socializing (book club, family gatherings & college weekends), business mentoring and leadership training online. I also loved to see the Pandemic trends, of increased pet ownership and work-from-home. As a recent first-time dog owner with over 10-year’s work-from-home experience, my overarching feeling during the Pandemic was the world was catching up to me. Many times friends would comment that
“I work harder now since I work from home. It’s too easy to get caught up in work.”.
It took my company launch for me to realize, that my lack of work-life balance was not the company’s fault. What I’ve found is work-life balance requires constant effort. That the effort can be small - like choosing to walk your dog or prepare a meal - just take time to check-in and choose.