Work Life
The line between work and life has blurred.
This was a statement made in a recent webinar I was watching.
It got me thinking about where we draw those lines.
In my early career, I remember a colleague being very careful to maintain their “professional” persona in the workplace. They deliberately left a big chunk of themselves at the door each day.
This is a practice almost guaranteed to impede performance, belonging and wellbeing at work. And, in reality, it doesn’t work. We can’t really switch off part of who we are, how we behave, what we know and what we can do. We are whole beings.
I know that there is comfort in drawing a line, and in joining those lines into boxes, and neatly compartmentalise it all for some sense of order and control. Except in many cases, there are no lines.
For example:
Work experience. Life experience. It is all experience.
Personal development. Professional development. It is all development.
Occupational skills. Domestic skills. They are all skills.
Technical knowledge. General knowledge. It is all knowledge.
Work life. Home life. It is all life.
Work me. Outside of work me. It is all me.
Removing that line feels good, don’t you agree?