Suggested reading on work-life balance

Last week I wrote a post in response to Dianne’s question about how I manage my time. I focused mainly on the actual “time management” part suggesting a work / reward system, using a timer etc. One thing that I need to be more careful of and feel that I do a pretty poor job of at times is balance. I hadn’t really thought about this until I read Rachelle’s post about the work – life balance.

I can manage my time all I want, but if I have the wrong balance – too much work or too much play – the evidence is there. Sometimes, as a freelancer working from home, I feel like I’m on a see-saw. Home is great (up), work is suffering (down). Work is great (up), home is suffering (down). And it’s a constant back-and-forth (or maybe it’s up-and-down to stick with the see-saw analogy). I wish I could figure out how to balance the see-saw (I remember trying that at recess during my elementary school days. It was so exciting – even if it lasted only a couple of seconds!) Rachelle’s comment – “In fact, I feel like a failure at it (the balance) almost everyday” – describes me perfectly.

I’m going to ponder the things I learned from Rachelle’s post, maybe write a future post on it, maybe not. Make sure you stop by Rachelle’s to read her post, though! I particularly enjoyed the comments to her first post so make sure to read those for more food for thought. She also wrote a follow-up post the following day, so read that too!