The first person to introduce me to the term work-life integration was Margaret Foti, president of AACR. I was on the Associate Member Council, which wanted to plan a Career Conversation on work-life balance at the upcoming Annual Meeting.
The term work-life integration resonates with me. That's because I never turn myself off from work, and work infiltrates every aspect of my life. Conversely, I never turn off my role as a mother, wife, foodie, exercise fan, ancestry buff, and career development blogger. My life certainly infiltrates my work.
The challenge comes in creating harmony between work and life. At times, work “emergencies” seem to take precedence over everyday life tasks. The key is not to let work become so all-consuming as to result in neglect of family and life responsibilities.
What does work-life integration look like?
In the morning when I wake up, I may check my email before I get out of bed. Immediately after daycare drop off, I will check emails again before I walk into the office. Often, I may take a conference call on my way into the office. There are days I may leave work early to go to soccer practice but may turn on the computer again at night.
A perfect example of work-life integration was when I would sit in a rocking chair beside the crib as my son was falling asleep while working on my computer. I am almost always available to my work colleagues and admittedly have trouble not answering emails even while on vacation.
How to practice effective work-life integration?
Set a routine in which you carve out blocks of time for life responsibilities
Up until recently, I have found it challenging to set aside time for myself to exercise. Prior to having a child, I ran 5 miles each day every morning before work. Some of my best mornings were along Kelly Drive in Philadelphia or in Forest Park in St. Louis.
After my son was born, I found it challenging to find time. More recently, I discovered that having a Peloton bike allows me to exercise at home while my son is sleeping. Everyday between 6:30am and 7am I set time to work out on my Peloton bike. Setting this time aside helps me dedicate myself to this task. Even my now 5 year old knows that if he wakes up during this time, he will find me on the bike and can help himself to the breakfast bars in the pantry. His expectation that I will be on my bike if he wakes up early is very motivating for me.
In the morning, the 30-to-60 minutes that my son takes to get dressed (including shoes!), eat breakfast, and get out the door is dedicated time for my family. The time when we get home from work through dinner time is also my dedicated time to my family.
After dinner, I may work if necessary. My husband and I take turns doing the bedtime routine so that the other can catch up on work-related activities. Or just watch TV with a glass of wine.
Coordinate schedules with your significant others, friends, and family
Not only do my husband and I trade-off on the bedtime routine, he and I also generally split household chores and cooking responsibilities.
For my son's swim class, I take turns with his classmate's family in doing the pick-ups and drop-offs and dinner preparation. This coordination gives the other family more time for errands or for work-related activities.
When I travel for work, I coordinate with my extended family to provide additional childcare as needed. Having a child takes a village, and one does not have to do all the responsibilities alone.
Outsource mundane tasks as needed
My time at home is valuable. Therefore, to maximize that time, I sometimes need to invest in services to help with everyday tasks. I have someone help with cleaning my house. I will use Home Appetit for food delivery when I know we have a busy week ahead of us. The amount of time that is spent grocery shopping, preparing food, and cooking can be saved by chef-prepared meals for the week that arrive at my door on Monday night!
I acknowledge that outsourcing is a privilege. This is a privilege that I couldn’t have imagined having when growing up or while in graduate or postdoctoral training. If I did not outsource, then I would have to be okay with a messy house or quickly-made inexpensive meals.
Challenges to this approach
This approach to work-life integration has resulted in my career success. However, the challenge with work-life integration is that it is possible to lose oneself to work responsibilities in the absence of boundaries. I admit that I should be better about establishing some boundaries and sticking to them (especially while on vacation).
My overall feeling is that it is hard for me to separate who I am from the work that I am doing. I love my job, and I love the life that I am building for myself. I am trying to build in more time for hobbies and for my husband while still being the best mother and Biomarker Lead at work that I can be.
Balancing it all has challenges, especially when there are changes to the routine as life or work events happen. Keeping harmony is an art and one that I am sometimes good at maintaining but most times fail in my strive to achieve.