Workers have been on a roller-coaster ride for more than two decades as organizations have downsized, outsourced, reengineered, delayered, divested and otherwise transformed. These monumental changes have left workers frustrated, angry, and dispirited.
Without spirit, we are empty vessels, sapped of our innate power and genius. Workers, especially leaders need to reconnect to the excellence within, to rediscover their true calling and the special gifts they can offer the workplace and the universe.
My personal journey has taught me we have more power than we think, more choices than we can imagine. When we open our souls to the universe, new energies and capabilities spill forth.
Work-life balance is a call in many organizations that top leaders, who are supposed to lead by example, fundamentally ignore. Of course, at a time when many organizations are struggling just to get by, there is a tendency to view such balance as a luxury, even as many individuals are feeling less committed to their workplace.
In the session, Tony exposed the myths of balance and helped us recalibrate the equation by answering the questions: what’s the reality about leadership and work-life balance, do we need a new definition, and what are the pluses and minuses if your notion of balance changes at different stages in your life.
We recorded and are making this archive copy of the session available for everyone who had schedule changes at the last minute. Of course, anyone who did attend and would like to review the material or share the information with a colleague is invited to do so too. The session handouts are still available here.
After you watch the recording, we would appreciate your thoughts on the seminar and on any other issues of interest to you. Your input will help us shape future free sessions and services, and will help our presenters better target their information in the future. The feedback form is here.
Did you agree with Tony? Disagree with him? Do you have other insights or experiences in trying to keep this delicate balance? Please leave your comments below, and let’s get that dialogue started.
Again, thanks to all those who attended and to Tony for sharing his research and insights with us. We look forward to the next opportunity to cross paths.
Just in time for Tony Smith’s lunch-time talk on work-life balance, we have this article from David Brooks about the life of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
As Brooks writes:
This isn’t the old story of a career woman trying to balance work and family. This is the story of pressures that affect men as well as women (men are just more likely to make fools of themselves in response, as the news of the last few years indicates). It’s the story of people in a meritocracy that gets more purified and competitive by the year, with the time demands growing more and more insistent.
Sounds painfully real… and yet, who can argue with her success and the impact of her life?
Workers have been on a roller-coaster ride for more than two decades as organizations have downsized, outsourced, reengineered, delayered, divested and otherwise transformed. These monumental changes have left workers frustrated, angry, and dispirited.
