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This week’s show is all about work life balance…and how you will never find it, but not for the reasons that you think.

The first issue with work life balance is that it is a false dichotomy. A dichotomy is when we compare two things that are intended to be direct opposites. But work and life aren’t direct opposites. Work is part of life and it is only one part of our lives. David Allen, author of Getting Things Done has a great way to talk about our lives as having roles and responsibilities. Work is simply one of those areas that we are attempting to balance with the other domains of our lives.

The real question is how we make ourselves struggle so much with finding this balance. This brings us to our next point which is the partial reality that we are likely never fully balanced in where we are putting our energy and attention at any one time. Different domains of our lives may require different levels of attention at different times.

Also, we can fall into the trap of workaholism and become addicted to working, often making our work a static part of our identity and at the same time, making the results of our work a referendum for our worth as people on the planet.

It is worthy to recognize that we need the space in our lives to even begin to notice where to put our attention and often, we don’t give ourselves this space to dream and become innovative around our work. We push through, thinking that one day we will get the rest and space that we need. We also don’t notice or appreciate these “tricks of the mind” and what they can bring to our lives. Stefan Sagmeister speaks to his realization around the need for time away from work and how this adds years to his life and creativity.

How do you find balance in your life and what do you notice works well for you when you feel out of balance?