Do you believe there is work/life balance?

[dejr_8]

I do believe you can have a good work/life balance to be happy.

However, no matter what your company says about fostering a good work/life balance environment, to be successful you will need to forgo your life when work calls.

 

[Kimberly]

Better off to be your own boss if you want to balance the work/life parts of your life. I never did take corporate jobs too well...

 

[clh2]

My employer can list many awards they have recieved for this type of thing.

I do work for a major hospital group in my town, I am not clinical. I work in an office. I have no interaction with patients.

Our company policy is there is no flexibility if you are 1 minute late. (2 lates in a 12 month period gets you written up.) And - the repercussions for taking too many sick days is unbelievable. I do understand that they need to be staffed the 24-7, due to be a health care facility. However, I do not take sick days unless I feel like I am on death's door. It is simply what must be done to avoid getting "demerits" for lack of a better word. Demerits affect many things (raises, ability to transfer departments, ability-by our deparment policy to take off on days before/after holidays etc.).

And - as far as showing up sick...if they send you home, it doesn't count against you, because at least you amde the attempt.

And...while I am on a complaining mode...when there is 12 inches of snow on the ground...I should be able to work from home. With what I do - I have computer access, so that is not a problem.

And - as a FT "exempt" employee - I can only take vacation days as a full day. So - It is hard to schedule things like Dr appointments for me without taking a full day off and a waste of 8 hours of vacation time.

I could go on and on...but I won't. But to answer the question - no, there is no home-life balance where I work.

 

[bicker]

Our company is pretty good about a lot of these things, and I've noted that a lot of employees do tend to take advantage of that and it adversely impacts the company a great deal (sometimes, even, leading to the support line going into voice mail for hours at a time). The real question is whether the cost of the exploitation exceeds the value derived from how morale is fostered, but even there I think the balance runs against the company, since it seems the more generous and lenient the company gets, the most demanding a lot of the employees get.

 

[Christine]

My employer can list many awards they have recieved for this type of thing.

I do work for a major hospital group in my town, I am not clinical. I work in an office. I have no interaction with patients.

Our company policy is there is no flexibility if you are 1 minute late. (2 lates in a 12 month period gets you written up.) And - the repercussions for taking too many sick days is unbelievable. I do understand that they need to be staffed the 24-7, due to be a health care facility. However, I do not take sick days unless I feel like I am on death's door. It is simply what must be done to avoid getting "demerits" for lack of a better word. Demerits affect many things (raises, ability to transfer departments, ability-by our deparment policy to take off on days before/after holidays etc.).

And - as far as showing up sick...if they send you home, it doesn't count against you, because at least you amde the attempt.

And...while I am on a complaining mode...when there is 12 inches of snow on the ground...I should be able to work from home. With what I do - I have computer access, so that is not a problem.

And - as a FT "exempt" employee - I can only take vacation days as a full day. So - It is hard to schedule things like Dr appointments for me without taking a full day off and a waste of 8 hours of vacation time.

I could go on and on...but I won't. But to answer the question - no, there is no home-life balance where I work.

Wow, I'm not sure I could function in that sort of situation. I've always had it very good at all of my jobs, in all types of employment.

But as bicker stated, when a company does allow flexibility, there is always a certain percentage of employees who abuse it and it's tough to watch and it's tough to supervise people like that without having issues all the time. It's a shame that those bad apples are just everywhere.

 

[golfgal]

No, I don't. Something will always have to give. I think there is a good reason why for so many years one spouse worked and one stayed home. That is the only real way to achieve any kids of balance--assuming we are talking about families with kids. Even working for yourself means at times either the job or the family will have to take a backseat to the other.

 

[ZeitgeistDuck]

Yes, I think the employer can do things to really help with work life balance. My employer has an onsite daycare. My daughter will even be able to do full day Kindergarten there this fall. That means I did all their feedings as infants, have been there for every 'first', attended all their class parties, kissed boo boos and am with them from 5:05 until 7:55 the next morning. My employer is great about time off for appointments, sick kids, etc. My boss always says, "your babies come first". I never, ever take advantage. Neither do my co-workers. We know we are blessed and don't want to screw it up.

 

[clh2]

But as bicker stated, when a company does allow flexibility, there is always a certain percentage of employees who abuse it and it's tough to watch and it's tough to supervise people like that without having issues all the time. It's a shame that those bad apples are just everywhere.

That is the problem where I work. The people who have abused the system have made it miserable for those of us who don't. Now my DD is driving, but it was really hard getting her to all the orthodontic appointments, her dr appointments, so the very few favors I asked of my boss went to things like that. Or - I would take a vacation day and "do a bunch of appoitnments in one day...i.e. on spring break, my DD went to the derm, dentist and orthodontist. It took a whole day to do this. I took a vacation day last December, and scheduled an eye appointment for me and and ortho for DD, BUT - this was a major snow day, ~15 inches, and I cancelled both appointments, and DD and I baked Christmas cookies. I have yet to reschedule the eye appoinment.

 

[dejr_8]

Just for clarity - I am not talking about Flex-time, snow days, on-sight day care, etc.

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

 

[golfgal]

Just for clarity - I am not talking about Flex-time, snow days, on-sight day care, etc.

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

I agree completely-like I said in my previous post, something has to give and if you want to move up, it will be your family.

 

[bicker]

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

Well any blanket declaration like that is assuredly going to be wrong, as such. While that might be true in certain companies, and even most companies (though some may dispute that), it is surely not the case in all companies.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

Just for clarity - I am not talking about Flex-time, snow days, on-sight day care, etc.

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

I think a lot of times that is true... but you have to make a decision on your priorities. That's why I don't ever care that I'm not the one getting the huge promotions.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

Just for clarity - I am not talking about Flex-time, snow days, on-sight day care, etc.

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

I disagree, based on my previous employment history and my own management style, but I think it also has a lot to do with the company.

My DW and I are both executives with our companies. Both hold themselves up as "family friendly" companies, and both truly are. We are both managers (I have 14 direct reports, DW has about 8), and both of us were told from the days we were hired that we are to embrace that culture (not that we needed to be told; that was why we chose to make the move from Boston to Iowa). We're both relatively young (I'm 34, she's 33), and we both work extremely hard at our jobs, but if DS2 is sick, I'll walk out of a meeting with the CEO to get him, and that is expected by the CEO. In fact, the CEO once scolded me for not taking a call from DW during a meeting with him, because he knew that my DS was home sick and "it might be important". DD5 has spent the day drawing on my white board while I have meetings around her, and that is not uncommon. And no, neither of us work for start-ups or small companies. My employer has about 600 employees and a $250MM in annual revenues and DW's has over a billion in revenue and thousands of employees.

Now, that isn't to say that DW and I don't make sacrifices. I go into work very early and leave "early-ish" to get the kids. DW goes in later and works a little later. I check in several times a day when I'm on vacation. All of my direct reports enjoy the same flexibility and expectations that I have placed on me by my manager. I don't care if they're in the office for 1 or 80 hours a week; if they get their jobs done, they will be rewarded. I have promoted people with young children or other demands on their schedules who militantly stick to 8-5 schedules and have fired a person who was at work from 6AM-8PM every day. She wasn't there because of dedication; she was an inefficient worker.

That having been said, we realize we are fortunate to be in these situations and don't take advantage of them. We know that not all companies are as supportive of work-life balance. But in answer to your question, yes, I believe that it is possible to have a work-life balance. Difficult, but possible.

 

[Nette]

I don't care if they're in the office for 1 or 80 hours a week; if they get their jobs done, they will be rewarded. I have promoted people with young children or other demands on their schedules who militantly stick to 8-5 schedules and have fired a person who was at work from 6AM-8PM every day. She wasn't there because of dedication; she was an inefficient worker.

You are the kind of manager I want to have. I've had a few that understood this, but also several who just don't get it. I get my job done, and done well. And I watch my coworkers who waltz in at 10am, then leave for coffee and lunch around 10:30, get back around 1 and then about 3pm have an hour and a half of "team bonding" (i.e. shooting the sh*t) and then they stay at work until 8 or 9 pm, and they are the ones that are dedicated. Whereas, I have to pick my kid up by a certain time, so I really stick to my schedule. That's not to say that I can't call on DH in times when I really *need* to stay at work, or that I won't come in on weekends or early, etc when it's necessary. It's also not to say that I wasn't an integral part of the team, I had no trouble meeting my commitments to my team members and enjoyed their company too, but to be dinged for using my time wisely irked the you know what out of me.

 

[Disney Doll]

Just for clarity - I am not talking about Flex-time, snow days, on-sight day care, etc.

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

I believe you are correct.

I also believe that there arecertain people who will choose "life" as being more important and there are certainpeople who will chooose "work" as being more important.

I am a "life" chooser, so I am grateful to all the "workers". I have no need of any promotions or big titles. As long as I enjoy my job and it affords me to live what I think is a decent lifestyle with a little fun thrown in, I'm happy.

I am not a terribly materialistic person...don't need the newest most expensive car, the biggest house, the latest iPhone or whatever....

 

[MrsPete]

Yes, it's possible to have a good balance between work and home MOST OF THE TIME. Most jobs have busy times and not-so-busy times.

For example, my husband's group hosts conferences 3-4 times a year; when the kids were small, we had a system: He'd highlight those days (and the days leading up to the conferences) on the calendar, and they were officially "no call days". He was not to be interrupted for any reason because he had to belong to his work on those days. Ditto for me, a teacher, on the first week of school and during exams. But the majority of the time, our lives weren't like that: the majority of the time, if we had a sick kid or a similar problem, he could leave early or I could get a sub for the next day.

Now that the kids are older, it's easier for us. Their needs aren't as immediate (it's been years since we had a dreaded "Susie is throwing up -- come now" call), and our oldest can drive.

In conclusion, yes, both my husband and I have a good work-home balance. We work hard, but we also have adequate time at home. Neither of us is upwardly mobile towards the tip-top of our professions, yet we have stable jobs and decent paychecks. Our kids are teens, and they're wonderful girls who've obviously been raised well. We, meaning my husband and I, still have a good relationship after 20 years of marriage. Yes, we have a good balance.

 

[bicker]

I think a lot of times that is true... but you have to make a decision on your priorities. That's why I don't ever care that I'm not the one getting the huge promotions.

And I think that's a great decision and attitude. I see, way too often, though, folks who make the kinds of decisions that you undoubtedly have to make, in favor of your life over your work, and yet still expecting to garner all the advantages that those who make the other decision garner. Fairness dicates that differences in performance and in contributions be reflected in advancement and compensation. This basically means that a good company, one that values all its employees and gives them all opportunities for a great career, must necessarily force a good balance, i.e., not let people choose to be slaves to their work.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Just for clarity - I am not talking about Flex-time, snow days, on-sight day care, etc.

I am stating that to be successful in a company you can't have a good work/life balance. When push comes to shove, the company will expect you to choose work over life. If you don't make that choice every time, you won't be the one considered for the big promotion.

I guess it depends on the company. What I have seen with DHs career is that he really works hard when he is working and he gives them his all a large part of the time (travelling 40 weeks a year, many long days and a fair amount of leaving/arriving on weekends, etc.) and he is willing to be flexibility and move where they need him (which some people could see as detrimental to family--we see it as a great benefit that allows out children to learn about lots of places and teach them flexibility and how to get along with people from all walks of life and many points of view). As a result of his obvious dedication, when there is a really strong reason for him to need to leave work early (when I had surgery, issues with the school and they knew we needed to work those out to stay in the country, insisting on being home the weekend of a dance recital, etc) the company has not questioned it AT ALL. DH is pretty far up in his company and I do not think he has been passed over for any promotions for putting his kids/wife first when we needed him to.

 

[dejr_8]

I guess it depends on the company. What I have seen with DHs career is that he really works hard when he is working and he gives them his all a large part of the time (travelling 40 weeks a year, many long days and a fair amount of leaving/arriving on weekends, etc.) and he is willing to be flexibility and move where they need him (which some people could see as detrimental to family--we see it as a great benefit that allows out children to learn about lots of places and teach them flexibility and how to get along with people from all walks of life and many points of view). As a result of his obvious dedication, when there is a really strong reason for him to need to leave work early (when I had surgery, issues with the school and they knew we needed to work those out to stay in the country, insisting on being home the weekend of a dance recital, etc) the company has not questioned it AT ALL. DH is pretty far up in his company and I do not think he has been passed over for any promotions for putting his kids/wife first when we needed him to.

I think your post is exactly what I am talking about. In my opinion, your husband has given up a lot of his life and as you say he is pretty far up his company. Would he be where he is at without the 40 weeks on the road?

 

[AKL_Megs]

My DH's and my careers are more "lifestyles" than careers.

DH gets ordered for overtime on a regular basis. My company can extend me into my days off as they wish.

I am gone sometimes 20 days a month. DH works 12 hour days, 4 - 5 days a week.

The funny thing is, I think that we are truly, absolutely happy with our careers, even though they are our LIFE, or at least a huge part of it.