For years the topic of work/life balance has been at the forefront of conversation among businesswomen.
There has been what seems like a never-ending quest to find the solution that will allow us to balance our work and life so that we are fulfilled, happy, and, of course, as successful in every facet of our lives as we hope.
In 2013 after the Atlantic published the widely read article Why Women Still Can’t Have it All by Anne-Marie Slaughter, followed by the book Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, the message to women was speak up, sit at the table, have a strong advocate for you at work, and find the right partner. Follow these directions and you, too, can have it all, all the time.
I personally found myself feeling woefully inadequate in every area of my life trying to “have it all.” These tips were not simple fixes and in fact I felt more of a failure knowing that other accomplished women were managing to employ these. Fortunately, in the past few years there has been a radical change in course on the subject.
THE CHANGING CONVERSATION ABOUT BALANCE
Expectations of and conversation about work life balance have changed in a notable way, and I find this refreshing and hopeful. I came across an article by Nozomi Morgan, Why Work Life Balance is a Myth, published earlier this year on Huffington Post. I found great solace in knowing that other women felt as I do, that work/life balance is a myth with no one-size-fits-all solution.
The solution is truly subjective and starts with prioritizing what is important to us. For professional women, our work and our lives are intertwined. To achieve an equilibrium in our lives, we need to decide what works best for us, personally: how much time we want to devote to each facet of our lives, our work, our personal life, our family life. There is no right and wrong percentage, only what our own priority is, what works best for us.
NEW SOLUTIONS TO AN OLD PROBLEM
I recently sat down with noted San Diego Psychotherapist and coach to business women, Elisabeth Caetano. For the past 18 years Elisabeth has been in private practice at her firm, Navigate Changes. She believes in a collaborative, supportive approach to therapy and coaching and shares our passion for serving professional women.
I love the way Elisabeth brings together a group of women to support each other, share their challenges and successes, and learn from one another. Elisabeth believes that everyone has strengths and skills that they can build upon to make concrete changes in life, reach new goals and take life to the next level. It’s positive psychology, goals based, with a strong collaborative emphasis; very similar to how WealthChoice works with clients.
I have found that many women we know are searching for their ideal life, and it eludes them.
This isn’t always a financial issue, but often an issue of priorities in life. Taking care of aging parents, growing children, our businesses, our personal relationships, and wanting to be present in each of these is daunting. It leaves many of us feeling inadequate, unfulfilled, tired. I asked Elisabeth if she would be willing to speak to the WealthChoice Community about how to make incremental changes to our lives in a way that can help us be happier and raise our quality of life.
I am thrilled to say she will be joining us on November 3rd for the first WealthChoice Community event. In the meantime, you can read more about Elisabeth and find tools you can employ right now at her website Navigate Changes. For more details on her November 3rd talk to WealthChoice Community, please visit our Events page
Living the quality of life you want is one of the Five Fundamentals in our financial planning process at WealthChoice. Let us know if you have questions about how to help you live the life you are working so hard to achieve.
