Work-life balance: is it really attainable?

Work, Family, Self: Choose Two

I recently had a thought-provoking conversation with an old family friend around the topic of work-life balance. For the sake of this article, I’m going to call her Jane.

Jane’s a very impressive woman. She’s highly educated, has had a stellar career in real estate development and finance, and has lectured on business at a number of Ivy League schools. For the finance nerds out there, she’s one of the co-inventors of commercial mortgage-backed securities.

Chris Do's video on making tough choices in life

A 4-Minute Video About Making Tough Choices in Life

I’ve had this video from Chris Do sitting open in a browser tab for over a month. It’s time that you saw it.

Chris Do is one of the most intriguing and influential people that I’ve come across online in the last year or so.

He’s an amazing artist and entrepreneur who teaches the “business of design” through his amazing education company, The Futur. His content is simply epic – it’s well-produced, engaging, selfless and meaningful on so many levels. I’m not a designer or graphic artist whatsoever, but find his insights on business and personal development to be incredibly valuable.

How do you show up in the world?

7 Personas: How Do You Show Up In The World? [Energy Leadership]

From one moment to the next, we are constantly changing and evolving how we are existing in the world. What we think about, how we feel, and the things we say and do: all of these aspects of us are constantly in flux. Our persona – what others see in us – is a reflection of what’s taking place in our inner world.

Please note that this post contains my interpretation of the copyrighted work of Bruce D Schneider and the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC).

How often do you consciously think about how you are “showing up” in the world? How much of your awareness of the world is directed at yourself?

Why is this even important in the first place?

Emotional intelligence is a term that is widely thrown around in business and leadership circles. It has been described as a combination of self-awareness, with the ability to regulate our emotions as well as the emotinos of those around us. A person with great emotional intelligence is likely to have much more success in maximizing their work and personal relationships, as well as in resolving conflicts between two or more parties.

The Harvard Business Review even went as far as to say that emotional intelligence is twice as important as IQ and technical skills “for jobs at all levels.”