Work-Life Balance: Do you enjoy your job?

Posted byVanya Wryter ConsultingPosted inBusiness, Entrepreneurship, Lifestyle, Work SkillsTags:, , , , , , , , , ,

Those who love their job as if it were a hobby are lucky. This is even more true if their income is their ideal amount and their coworkers are great to be around. I certainly think of my job as something I could do even while on vacation and not consider myself as working. However, we need to draw the line somewhere–at what point is work intruding on personal time?

Daily writing prompt
Do you enjoy your job?
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Let’s weigh in on the question: What is work-life balance? How do you define it? Whether you have a work-life balance and whether you view clear boundaries between the two depends on how much you love your job. Here are some rare points of view to consider.

Remote work has made it easier to blend home life and work life into one room (or house). Employers and clients may have the expectation that you’ll respond to messages or complete work tasks between 9 a.m. to … well, 9 a.m. the next morning. 

As someone who manages projects, I’m answering work messages from morning til evening and on the weekends sometimes. Apps on smartphones have made it easier than ever to blur the lines between the office and personal time as we receive notifications even when away from the office.

The constant plug-in to workplace communication and work tasks can be exhausting. People need a break from work to recharge and return to their tasks with fresh eyes. But is it bad to blend work and home life together?

Some people love their career enough that working is as enjoyable as watching Netflix or playing video games. I’ve met some of these people (so they do exist).  

If you enjoy your work as much as you’d enjoy a hobby, then is working extra hours synonymous with workaholicism or overachieving? Does it make a difference whether you’re designing a graphic for a client or painting a picture to hang on your wall?

Some self-employed people live in their business. They are always reading or watching videos for self-improvement, or brainstorming new ways to increase their income or expand their products and services. Would this be considered overworking? It depends.

Everyone should be learning new things, whether it is a new hobby, new skill, or general-interest knowledge. People challenge themselves with fitness goals, reading goals, or social goals. How is investing more time in your career or business any different, if you love what you do, and if you still have time for friends and family?

If you enjoy what you do, then perhaps a job or business is no different than investing time and energy in a hobby or pastime. With this perspective, would work-life balance be… “balanced”? 

Of course, whether you have a spouse or children affects how much time you need away from work. If you enjoy traveling or socializing with friends, these interests also affect how much time you need to recharge from work. And of course, if you’re an introvert who prefers more “me time” away from your work and coworkers, that’s important too.

What are your thoughts on work-life balance if you have a job or career that you love?

39 thoughts on “Work-Life Balance: Do you enjoy your job?”

  1. Pingback: 3 Ways to Increase Your Income If You’re Self-Employed – Vanya Wryter Consulting Services

  3. Great post, i must admit, this has being one of my biggest issue to blend work and life and career man is an indispensable creature who can achieve anything he set his heart earnestly to however to achieving work-life balance, one just have to let this flow and follow the flow…

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  6. I really enjoy my job. Not all of it. The parts where I help others are very enjoyable. The administrative parts of my job suck, well paperwork usually does. It is about having a job that has meaning and purpose.

    As for having a hobby as a job, I have tried but when you are making money with your hobby you end up with administrative stuff that sycks the life out of it. Soon you end up not liking the hobby because itbis a job.

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    1. I understand where you’re coming from. As a contractor, I have a lot of unpaid admin work. I think paperwork is unavoidable. I usually do that first and reward myself with something I do enjoy.
      What is your job? You said you enjoy it.
      Thanks for commenting!

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  12. Work and life balance is something I struggle with a bit and struggled with a lot in my first year of freelancing. Unfortunately, when you freelance you have to work harder to keep your life separate from your work.

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  15. I co-facilitate narrative therapy workshops after teaching high school English for several years. Our work has been online since the start of the pandemic. I am rewarded by what I do. Even so, it is important to balance physical activity with computer time. Thanks for the post!

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  18. Great post. I have offered 24/7 emergency coverage throughout my career; however, the emergence of cellphones/texting/etc. allows people to disrespect boundaries and become intrusive.

    Sadly, people seem to expect immediate responses to almost every message they send. I pulled the plug after someone texted me at 3:07 am to let me know that someone left a car in our parking lot. Really????

    I now use Focus all the time. In fact, my cellphone automatically turns off text and email notifications when it detects my home WiFi signal as I’m pulling my car into the garage. People can still contact me by phone in emergencies, but I have learned to screen those calls, too. If the call is about something I can handle the next day, I don’t even respond to the call until the next day.

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    1. Fortunately I now work for a company that doesn’t expect me to answer a message unless I’m working. Previously I worked for a company that messaged me at 2am and expected me to do non-emergency work immediately and without advance notice. Good to establish boundaries.

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  19. Great post. Achieving work-life balance is so difficult. I believe that I started to develop a sense of work-life balance towards the end of my career. I think you need to be a mature leader to fully experience it. At that point, you truly have a grasp of work requirements and can then decide what is important and what is not.

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    1. Agreed, especially about the part of being a mature leader. When you’re first starting a job or career, you want to show that you are totally capable so you go above and beyond. Later in your career, you’ve proven yourself so it is easier to step back from work if you want.

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