Work/life balance....control and impact

“What we’ve learned over the years is work/life balance has to be defined at the individual level. It means different things to different people at different times in their lives. What is universally true is the importance of two key factors—control and impact. If our teams are working in an environment where they have an appropriate level of control over their schedule and their work is clearly having measurable impact, they can achieve their definition of work/life balance.” Steve Ellis, Managing Director, Bain & Company

Coming from a leader whose company has been consistently ranked in the top 10 of the best “places to work” in (Consulting Magazine), it is indeed very relevant and insightful. After having put in more than 27 years, post qualification, and seen different businesses from different angles and perspectives over the years I truly relate to his thought of work/ life balance meaning different things to different people at different times in their lives.

Without taking away anything from the concept of ‘control’ – all of us like to have some control over what we do, how we do it and when we do it, however, I also believe that a person will be ready to cede control to some extent in case he/ she is able to get the satisfaction of seeing the positive impact of the work being done by him/ her, whether at work or in personal life, and be appreciated for it.