Over the years I’ve noticed my priorities shift, and I can only assume they will continue to shift as I get older and eventually have a family. At the same time I see friends and acquaintances whose priorities haven’t changed much over the years. This is undoubtedly a common story, repeating itself all over on a day to day basis. I also find myself at the same time filling my “free time” with work because my priority is my company; despite knowing what my priority is, I’ve been complaining of being burnt out for months. The reason I bring it up is because I’m fascinated with motivation and balance.
Why we do what we do, and how we go about getting things done varies immensely from person to person. I see many of my friends who are intensely driven and focused seemingly working themselves to the bone. I often ask myself, is that sustainable, dont they need balance? Many of these people I don’t think they can slow down, but that’s when I realize that balance is different for everyone. I might not be able to be productive 40 hours a week, but maybe my 25 hrs a week of work is more productive than someone else’s 60? Maybe those 15extra hours I am expected to work on a normal schedule make my first 25 less effective and thus reducing my overall productivity?
So how am I going to figure out this balance? I’m going to measure and track everything and run experiments. My first experiment is going to be not working Fridays starting January 1. By compressing my “work” to 9-5 Monday-Thursday maybe the procrastinator in me will be driven to produce more high quality work (excluding emergencies I’ll prevent myself from working outside this window). What am I going to do with my extra day? Menial stuff that otherwise would have distracted me during the week or interfered with my workflow. Come the end of January ill let you know if my 4 day week was worth it.
How do you find balance? Perhaps work-life harmony is a better description?
