TSL #002: Want More Time In Your Work Week? (Free Download)
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In a coaching call this week, it hadn't even occurred to my client to block her calendar for personal time during the workday. And when I mentioned it, she explained that she worried she might not be available if a colleague needed to move a meeting.
She's not alone. This is a common train of thought among the mid- and senior-level corporate leaders with whom I work. After all, they got to where they got because of their dedication.
But the opportunity was about so much more than carving out 30 min of personal time (identity…worth…agency…security, to name a few). Because—like the frog being slowly boiled alive—this client was unable to see just how much work permeated her life choices.
During a recent mental fitness and psychological safety training I facilitated, the attendees kept proclaiming a desire for better “work-life balance.” I clarified that this doesn't exist…that it's all life, and asked, “Why does work get a special call-out? And top billing?!?” “Good point," they said.
And it's a genuine question worth asking…even for the careerists among us. Why does work hold so much prominence in our lives?
careerist | \ kəˈrɪərɪst \ noun
: a person whose main concern is for professional advancement, especially one willing to achieve this by any means.
You might respond with proclamations of purpose and meaning and fulfillment. These can be true…but they're not the whole picture…because you likely create purpose and meaning and fulfillment in other areas of your life, too (even if they've felt ignored of late).
WHAT TO DO
If you're beginning to recognize that you've become a “default careerist” (i.e., work has become overly prominent), and you want to do something about it…then your first step is awareness.
Grab this free tracker to become more aware of how you're currently allocating your time. Dedicate time this week to creating greater awareness of just how much time you spend in the Instagram/TikTok spiral on activities that don't light you up (inc. work!). Because (I'm comin' in hot with a G.I. Joe cartoon reference from our Gen X youth) “knowing is half the battle.” (Of course, that was before Google, and Apple watches, and White Lotus…so maybe knowing is more like a fifth of the battle? )
Dedicate time this week to tracking where your time goes so you can generate awareness of the shifts you wish to make instead of giving in to the “I don't have time” trap.
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