Lovely piece and really valid point. You've perfectly explained something I have found myself trying to live by without fulling acknowledgement of exactly why.
Perhaps work life harmony is catchier than life bucket integration? Harmony implies two or more things interacting to make something more powerful and beautiful than alone.
Though life bucket integration does give me a greater sense of active stacking of the different elements at once. Yet harmony sounds a bit like theres different stuff going on but they are all happy with each other.
Well my main point is this post is brilliant and it's making me think. Cheers.
In an earlier draft I used that exact phrasing, work life harmony, but I decided that still suggested work was something separate from life instead of an essential part of it
Another great article. Thanks Nat. I look forward to more material on how kids are realistically affecting and influencing your world. It is interesting to see the evolution of your thinking and output since you became a dad. Cheers!
I really like the insight about dedication to family vs work and societal acceptance. What I feel this article didn’t steel-man is the very real trade off that achieving a high return in a single area of your life sometimes means neglecting other areas of your life.
The trade offs are real and an exploration of how to make them without completely throwing away the one need would be helpful.
To be more specific I would make an arrogant statement to say that this article could only be written by someone who doesn’t have children.
Children, as an example, are all consuming (assuming you’re not extremely wealthy and need to work)
They mercilessly demand that you portion the 24 hours in a day with a substantial chunk given to them. The trade offs become even more harsh within this light
I like your point about relentlessly focusing on one for outsized success in that area. I have a couple articles on topics related to that I wanted this as a tee-up for. Especially around focusing on making lots of money now then building a family vs. building it all together.
As a father/husband with a full-time day job and several creative hobbies (like substack-ing), a question that I ask myself often when I go to do something is, "can I incorporate 1 or 2 more areas in doing this?"
For example: working out. I could go to the gym + listen to lectures or the Scriptures (spirituality) Or I could go to the gym + go with friends (social). Or I could work out at home and allow my kids to wrestle all over me (family); my boy likes being the kettlebell for hip thrusts.
I try not to incorporate as many areas in one activity as possible because it reaches a point of distraction. Better to be content with 2-3 areas. You could have a one-man band playing 24 instruments, but a blues guitarist with a harmonica is probably more enjoyable.
The effect here is the liquidation and erosion of freedom by supplanting of the work/life balance dichotomy. The puzzle metaphor is deceptive, as many tend to visualize puzzle pieces being uniform in area; work is hardly a single manageable puzzle piece for many. Often people are juggling 2 or 3 oversized work pieces. There are not sufficient workers who experience work as a harmonious component of their life for life/work balance metaphor to be less meaningful to them. Life/work balance is a crucial dichotomy that helps avail better working conditions for all. Articles like this find fellowship in union busting.
Awesome read. Thanks for the perspective shift. I was wondering if I was all work and no play, but this helped me realize that it's just a bucket that is part of a larger ecosystem that is my life.
I really enjoyed this article. Pursuing a time demanding career with a husband and 2 lovely children, and and a lust for exercise and travel, I quickly realized life could not be about balance. It needed to be about blending. I can't say I have mastered the blend to fully satisfy all of my desires/interests all the time, but it has worked for me most of the time - no regrets
Agree on the point experiences are getting richer when incorporating more areas of interest. Just finished reading "4000 weeks - time management for mortals" - the author might call your article "another sign of the crazy thought that we need to do everything the world offers in our short lifes". Did you read that book and, if, I'd love to hear your comment on that!
Lovely piece and really valid point. You've perfectly explained something I have found myself trying to live by without fulling acknowledgement of exactly why.
Perhaps work life harmony is catchier than life bucket integration? Harmony implies two or more things interacting to make something more powerful and beautiful than alone.
Though life bucket integration does give me a greater sense of active stacking of the different elements at once. Yet harmony sounds a bit like theres different stuff going on but they are all happy with each other.
Well my main point is this post is brilliant and it's making me think. Cheers.
In an earlier draft I used that exact phrasing, work life harmony, but I decided that still suggested work was something separate from life instead of an essential part of it
You’ve reframed the work/balance well. Thanks
Another great article. Thanks Nat. I look forward to more material on how kids are realistically affecting and influencing your world. It is interesting to see the evolution of your thinking and output since you became a dad. Cheers!
Definitely want to write more about that, it’s been wonderful in a number of unexpected ways
I really like the insight about dedication to family vs work and societal acceptance. What I feel this article didn’t steel-man is the very real trade off that achieving a high return in a single area of your life sometimes means neglecting other areas of your life.
The trade offs are real and an exploration of how to make them without completely throwing away the one need would be helpful.
To be more specific I would make an arrogant statement to say that this article could only be written by someone who doesn’t have children.
Children, as an example, are all consuming (assuming you’re not extremely wealthy and need to work)
They mercilessly demand that you portion the 24 hours in a day with a substantial chunk given to them. The trade offs become even more harsh within this light
I don’t disagree, I have a 10 month old!
I like your point about relentlessly focusing on one for outsized success in that area. I have a couple articles on topics related to that I wanted this as a tee-up for. Especially around focusing on making lots of money now then building a family vs. building it all together.
Reading this article is a relief, thank you.
As a father/husband with a full-time day job and several creative hobbies (like substack-ing), a question that I ask myself often when I go to do something is, "can I incorporate 1 or 2 more areas in doing this?"
For example: working out. I could go to the gym + listen to lectures or the Scriptures (spirituality) Or I could go to the gym + go with friends (social). Or I could work out at home and allow my kids to wrestle all over me (family); my boy likes being the kettlebell for hip thrusts.
I try not to incorporate as many areas in one activity as possible because it reaches a point of distraction. Better to be content with 2-3 areas. You could have a one-man band playing 24 instruments, but a blues guitarist with a harmonica is probably more enjoyable.
The effect here is the liquidation and erosion of freedom by supplanting of the work/life balance dichotomy. The puzzle metaphor is deceptive, as many tend to visualize puzzle pieces being uniform in area; work is hardly a single manageable puzzle piece for many. Often people are juggling 2 or 3 oversized work pieces. There are not sufficient workers who experience work as a harmonious component of their life for life/work balance metaphor to be less meaningful to them. Life/work balance is a crucial dichotomy that helps avail better working conditions for all. Articles like this find fellowship in union busting.
Awesome read. Thanks for the perspective shift. I was wondering if I was all work and no play, but this helped me realize that it's just a bucket that is part of a larger ecosystem that is my life.
I really enjoyed this article. Pursuing a time demanding career with a husband and 2 lovely children, and and a lust for exercise and travel, I quickly realized life could not be about balance. It needed to be about blending. I can't say I have mastered the blend to fully satisfy all of my desires/interests all the time, but it has worked for me most of the time - no regrets
Agree on the point experiences are getting richer when incorporating more areas of interest. Just finished reading "4000 weeks - time management for mortals" - the author might call your article "another sign of the crazy thought that we need to do everything the world offers in our short lifes". Did you read that book and, if, I'd love to hear your comment on that!