By Victor M. Parachin
For some time, Dan Bent of Honolulu, Hawaii, was actively involved in his Rotary Club, an international organization for business people. However, simply attending the weekly meetings was not satisfying enough, so Bent came up with a plan. Each week he made it a point to call someone he didn”t know in his 380-member club and ask if he or she would like to ride with him to the luncheon meeting. Those drives, which could take up to 25 minutes, transformed many relationships, not only for Bent, but for those in the club. Eventually Bent was invited to be the president, but, more importantly, he has developed a special bond with each of the persons he reached out to. Those very relationships are the ones that have become most important in his personal and professional life.
Bent is a good example of someone who brought more enjoyment into his professional life by making the commitment of getting to know the people he was previously interacting with on a surface level. For too many people, there is not enough balance between life and work, between the personal and the professional. For too many people work, even highly paid work, is a daily drudgery that brings little satisfaction and joy. They can identify with the psalmist who wrote: “In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling. . .” (Psalm 127:2).
In his book Time Wars, social critic Jeremy Rifkin says this:
We seem to have less time for ourselves and far less time for each other. . . . We have become more organized but less spontaneous, less joyful.
If you are one of those joy-starved workers, here are seven ways to bring joyful balance to life and work.
1. Take your vacation.
A fatigued mind does nothing but repeat and imitate the same old thoughts and behaviors. A fresh, renewed mind, however, is able to generate new levels of thinking and discover innovative ways of meeting challenges. A vacation is an energy-renewing break.
Although it”s offered, it is surprising how many don”t take the time to rejuvenate themselves. In his autobiography, Lee Iacocca, former chairman of the Chrysler Corporation, lamented:
Over the years, I”ve had many executives come to me and say with pride: “Boy, last year I worked so hard that I didn”t take any vacation.” . . . I always feel like responding, “You dummy. You mean to tell me that you can take responsibility for an $80 million project and you can”t plan two weeks out of the year to go off with your family and have some fun?”
2. View your work as your spiritual vocation.
“God puts you where God needs you,” author Lawrence Kushner says in The Book of Words. He reminds readers to view their work from a spiritual perspective, that every job has a meaning and purpose in the grand scheme of things:
You are where you are supposed to be. The job you are doing may not be any easier on account of this, indeed it may be harder, even more urgent, but now you are centered, focused, clear. So this is where I am supposed to be. I always thought I was supposed to be somewhere else, doing something else, being someone else. But I realize now that I was mistaken. This does not mean that I can”t or will not be doing something else. Just right now, I am where God wants me.
3. Reach out to younger, newer coworkers.
Become an unofficial mentor or coach to someone new or younger in your organization. Take newcomers and less experienced workers under your wing. Teach them everything you know. Help them succeed. They”ll appreciate your effort, and you will have the satisfaction of seeing them grow.
4. Don”t neglect “small” gestures.
The seemingly “small” gestures actually have a big impact in your place of work. “Small gestures of concern for another person”s welfare, or of simple hospitality, have an enormous impact on people”s sense of connection with you,” writes Rabbi David Baron in his book Moses on Management. “Life is lived in the small gestures””the door held open for another person, the glass of water offered to a visitor to your office, the ten seconds it takes to ask a secretary if her child has recovered from the flu.”
Be open to every opportunity to practice “small” acts of kindness and courtesy. They will have a long, lingering effect and will further humanize your workplace.
5. Create community at your place of work.
Elizabeth Danziger, president of Worktalk Communications Consulting in Venice, California, tells of teaching a writing class at the corporate headquarters of T. J. Lipton, the tea company.
“Everyone was paying close attention to the training,” she recalls. “At 10:15 in the morning, the participants suddenly started glancing at one another and the door. I asked them what was happening. One person replied, “˜It”s the tea cart. Every day the tea cart comes down the hall at about this time. No one wants to miss their tea break.””
Rather than just go to work, put in your day, and leave, try to establish rituals and events at your place of work that create a sense of community and closeness for colleagues and employees.
6. Connect yourself to nature.
Nature nurtures. If you”re feeling unhappy, unmotivated, or uninspired by your work, then something as simple as spending time in nature can be just the nurture you need to feel rejuvenated and renewed.
Bill O”Hanlon is a counselor and author of Do One Thing Different. In that book he tells of a man who was burned out in his career. He worked full time and was going to school pursuing an advanced degree. Married with two children, his discretionary time was severely limited. So, when he committed to being a chaperone for his son”s camping trip in the wilderness for two weeks, he felt burdened by that additional responsibility and activity. However, he felt there might be some benefit in being away from work for those 14 days. O”Hanlon explains what transpired for that man:
The first day was difficult. His mind was on work and on all his responsibilities. But by the end of the first week, he was feeling renewed and energetic, even though the days had been filled with vigorous physical activities and he was terribly out of shape. Being in nature and using his body left him invigorated. By the end of the two weeks, he vowed that he would arrange to spend at least one day a month hiking in nature. He followed through on this plan and was able to complete his degree without feeling so overwhelmed and burned out.
7. Use the lunch hour as a time for personal daily renewal.
Again, far too many people simply work through lunch or have a business lunch where more work is being conducted. Remind yourself that you will think better, speak more wisely, and generally be a more hospitable person by taking this midday break for yourself. One woman, a busy executive for a large advertising firm in Chicago, Illinois, says she always takes her lunch break, sometimes at a park, sometimes with a book, sometimes at a museum. Occasionally she takes a walk. Once she even enjoyed a midday massage at a downtown spa!
By giving some careful thought to ways you can balance life and work, your life and work will become inspired rather than tired, energetic rather than lethargic, and joyful rather than dreadful.
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Victor M. Parachin conducts a multifaceted writing and counseling ministry from his home in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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