|
|
Post by peachymom1 on Jul 19, 2023 23:52:05 GMT -5
What’s on your mind — how to make kugel? This week’s Torah reading? Life goals? Prayer? We are all engaged in weight loss/weight maintenance journeys and we are all Jewish or at least interested in Judaism. We like to eat, we like to discuss. It is our goal here to provide each other support on our journeys, to share experiences, to call on our rich cultural heritage and texts, and to help each other grow spiritually.
Some of us take weekly turns starting the thread:
Frieda
Holly
Lee
Louise
Lynne
Peachy
And for those of you that stop by to read this thread without posting — you are welcome to, but you are also welcome to chime in. Don’t be shy!
|
|
|
|
Post by peachymom1 on Jul 19, 2023 23:52:44 GMT -5
Good morning everyone! At the Shabbat table last week, DS32 brought up the subject of work-life balance. He spoke rather passionately about how important it is to not work so hard that you miss out on family stuff, wreck your health, or deprive yourself of enjoyment. We had a pretty lively discussion, because I’ve been hearing a lot in recent years about the younger generation being more focused on a healthy work-life balance, and the subject has even come up in interviews for entry-level positions in our department at work.
I’ve heard some people in my own age group complain about the younger generation being lazy or at least less serious about working hard and getting ahead, but I think DS32 (and the interviewees too, for that matter) make good points. From what I’ve seen, they work just as diligently as the rest of us, so I wouldn’t say they are lazy. And I’m definitely in favor of people creating a more balanced and healthy lifestyle. So maybe they’re onto something, and maybe it’s about time.
What do you think? What have you seen and heard in recent years about work-life balance? Do you wish there had been more of an emphasis on this when you were younger? Do you think they’re maybe going too far and not taking work seriously enough? What do the younger folks in your family say about it?
|
|
|
|
Post by hollygail on Jul 20, 2023 7:56:35 GMT -5
I've been out of the work force for more years than I want to count. There are times I find it difficult not to be employed on a more-or-less regular basis, whether full time or part time. I have no practical knowledge of what's going on in today's work world and so have no opinion about the younger people's ideas compared with what I lived with while I was actively engaged in earning a living for myself and my dependents. I'd like to learn more about the current situation.
|
|
|
|
Post by louise on Jul 20, 2023 8:01:40 GMT -5
I think I am pretty out of touch as well. I work as much as I need to get my various jobs (work and synagogue) done. Sometimes it feels like too much but that is cyclical so tolerable and actually satisfying. I don't have much of a family life to interfere with or I might have to be stricter about boundaries. I don't mean that as "poor me", it's just how it is and it works for me.
|
|
|
|
Post by gazelle18 on Jul 20, 2023 9:54:23 GMT -5
As the mother of two adult children (40 and 42), I have heard about this topic. I also hear from DH, who works with (complains about) younger docs and health care workers. And as chair of Avodah, I interacted with staff in their 20’s and early 30’s, some of whom proudly took “mental health days” when they determined they needed some sunshine. The “work-life balance” is definitely a generational thing. In my working years as a litigator, it was a badge of honor to prep for trial until the wee hours of the night, then go to court the next day and litigate all day, and then head to the nearest bar to either celebrate your victory or bemoan your loss. “Work-life balance” might have meant being sure to calendar your kid’s high school graduation, so as not to miss too much of it. (I was actually never as bad as this, but many of my colleagues were.)
As with everything else in life, I think it is a matter of degree. There is a fine line between practicing “work-life balance” and becoming a fragile flower. Peachy , I’m sure your DS is NOT lazy or a fragile flower!
|
|
|
|
Post by peachymom1 on Jul 20, 2023 14:01:08 GMT -5
Like with anything else, there are some companies/working environments that will take advantage of a person's work ethic and exploit them, and there are some who will treat people fairly and go out of their way to help you with your career. I had an office job in college where the young professionals were expected to work overtime without pay, because they were learning the business and it was considered good experience/opportunity for them. There's some wisdom in that. But sometimes it's ridiculous. The year I was teaching high school, the only way I could keep up was to eat, sleep and breathe my job, with no time for anything else. Yes, in time I would have learned some shortcuts and automated some of my materials as I gained experience. But it was totally exploitative, and I was miserable. I'd grown up learning a strong work ethic, and I was sure that if I just tried hard enough, it would all work out. Hah! I practically had a nervous breakdown, and the only thing that saved me was finding out I was pregnant. As soon as I told the OB where I worked, he immediately signed me off on maternity leave, God bless him. He knew better than I did that I was overworked and overstressed.
The first boss I had at my current job was a C-officer of the company with about 200 people reporting up to her. Almost all of us were classified as exempt (= no overtime pay), but she was extremely mindful of everyone's workload and made sure nobody worked too much or too late, unless it was absolutely necessary. Every boss I've had at this company since has been the same way. And there have been some great compensations. Even my monster boss back in the 90s (I left him in 2001) gave us extra vacation days, sent us for massages, and finagled bonuses for us when the company was sold and we worked crazy hours. That was in addition to a whole lot of free meals and even extras like concert tickets. (That's how I got to see Rod Stewart, and that was an amazing show!)
We taught our kids a strong work ethic, and it's interesting and gratifying to DH and me to hear out kids talk about how diligently they work at their jobs. But we also listen for any signs of abuse or exploitation. DS32 (the scientist) quit an on-campus job when he was an undergrad, after his boss treated the entire staff disrespectfully and made unfair (and I think illegal as well) demands on them. And I know for sure that this kid is not a snowflake. He worked his butt off at the cardiology lab when he was working on his PhD, but he walked out on the doctor who was the head of the lab when he started stealing the PhD candidates' work and abusing them verbally. When he called to tell us about it, I was flabbergasted, because I thought that meant he'd given up on the whole program. But no, he went to the program coordinator and told her the whole story. She said his time, effort, research and participation were too valuable to lose because of one jerk, and that he should go to all the other heads of labs and find someone who would take him. And he did. DS32 had spent a whole year working in the lab for free before he was accepted into the PhD program, and he had built a reputation for himself. The doctor who took him on was more than happy to have DS join his team, and he spoke very highly of DS and his work, when DS did his PhD defense on Zoom. I was as proud of how he handled that road bump as I was of his effort to earn the PhD.
|
|
