Great perspectives, Jessi.

I am also an advocate of the work-life blended perspective, especially regarding our identity. When we separate our work self from personal self we create an illusion that work and personal personas are different and should be treated as such. Now we must be two different people: personal “me” and work “me.”

Even the common visual of work/life balance on a scale supports this myth of separation—work is one end; life the other. But are they really separated? And how much energy does it take to maintain this separation? Sure, our responsibilities between work and home are different, but what about our personalities?

If we can shift our vision and see our work as a subcomponent within a larger circle of life, then we start to see integration. Now our human “doing” is embedded within our human “being”. Work/life balance becomes about integration.

A true balance between work and life comes with knowing that all our life activities are integrated, not separated.

Cheers!