By: Lisa Markovits.
There is a famous poem by American poet Robert Frost where the narrator finds two roads in a forest and doesn’t know which to take.
Both look pleasant, and he thinks that he could possibly walk along the road without choosing a future.
However, since one path always leads to another, he will possibly never return to this site again. In this moment, he makes his world-famous decision to “take the road less traveled.” He claims this choice, to take the path less common or traditional, “has made all the difference” in his life.
The Ups and Downs of Life
In this week’s Neighborly Conversations dialogue circle, the group decided to talk about their difficulties finding work-life balance.
It is always a complex topic, even more so during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It’s like work invaded home. Not only because many people have suddenly had to work from home, but also because the lines between the office and the personal space of home have blurred, especially for those that only need a computer to work.
Emails arrive at midnight and we answer them in the wee hours of the morning — and the weekends become an extension of the workweek.
This Makes Us More Productive, Right?
For some participants of the dialogue circle, the power to maintain virtual connections, either through work, school, or with friends, has been a lifesaver during these isolated times. It has filled the emptiness stemming from a lack of physical connections.
For others, it has become a moment of pause, giving us an opportunity to reflect on how we want to live our lives, both now and after the pandemic. Because the only thing that all could agree on was that working 24/7 is not only unproductive, but unhealthy too.
We are obligated to let go of the unimportant things and focus on our priorities in life.
I Am Who I Am, Not What I Do
No one is disparaging work. In fact, it’s with constant effort and discipline — mixed with a bit of luck — that we move forward. However, the community was insistent about the necessity of just being, of finding peace in our actions.
In conclusion, work is just work. We aren’t indispensable at work, but we are to ourselves and our loved ones.
Which leads us to the need for finding balance, of taking the road that combines enough work to support ourselves and grow professionally, without losing sight of the most important things in life.
This week’s pearl is: I am not what I do, I am what I am
Are you also facing a big decision about how to move forward in your life with balance? Tell us how you’re going to manage it or how you’ve managed it in the past.
