Thursday, February 05, 2009
Google Latitude?
Ok..NO! I don't want to be tracked every minute of my day. Are you telling me that I can no longer WFH and actually sit and work from *bux or my favorite hole-in-the-wall eatery? Are you telling me that I can no longer tell my friend 'I'm on my way' while truthfully I am still at home in front of my mirror throwing on some lipstick? Are you telling me that I can no longer say I'm away for my weekend while the truth is I am too lazy to get outta my couch at home. I mean, I don't mind knowing where I am at, but I definitely mind knowing that someone else knows where exactly I'm at..
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
WLB..a myth?
I am gearing to get back to work. The last 4 months were the most enjoyable time of my entire life. I had a beautiful baby girl in Nov and my life hasn't been the same. She is so much joy that words fail to express what I feel when I see her smile. As I sit down, with her enjoying her beauty sleep on my lap, I begin to wonder.
In less than 20 days, I get back to work. This world has seen me go through job-life. I used to love the challenge at work. So many evenings/nites/weekends were all sunk in work and sometimes, I even enjoyed it! Doing well and moving up the career ladder was extremely important not just to my ego but also to my understanding of who I really am! Now, all that is out of the window. I am not saying that I want to sit at home and take care of my daughter. All I am saying is that office work doesn't seem to head my list of important things. I love this transformation and fear it at the same time.
Fear, because I am in search of Utopia - Work Life Balance.
Is it a myth?a fairy tale which ends 'and they lived happily ever after' but all of us know, there is no happily ever after. That is because life is a journey and not a destination. I haven't heard one soul among my friends say that they have a good work life balance. Everyone seems to be struggling to spend time with their families, spend enough time with work, network and stay happy. In the scrambling to find happiness and peace, we all quite miss out on enjoying the journey of life. What I really don't understand is why work environments are designed the way they are. Doesn't everyone realize that such designs only add stress to their lives. The stress seeps in and creates restlessness in family lives. But wait, it doesn't stop there. It also creeps into work life and creates shoddy deliverable. Why don't companies simply realize that a happy employee means a longer and sustainable profit for the firm?
In this day and age of global competition, employers push for working beyond geographical boundaries. While it seems great that we have 24 hr stores, helplines, ATMS, it also means that someone is working beyond his 8 hr day..his/her 40 hr week. Many of my friends can vouch for the pain of working beyond time zones and boundaries, simply to deliver faster (the better is lost in translation!). Do we really need instant gratification and success in $$ at the cost of happiness? Oh like the companies really care!
To me it seems like running on the treadmill to stay in place. ..rush to work, rush to meetings, rush to reply to emails, rush through lunch..the list is endless. It seems like people just want to get done with their job and rush back home to rush through the rest of their day. And it finally dawns on 31st Dec every year..the ultimate question: How did this year fly by? Promptly 'Will do better this year' follows.. How can one break this cycle?
So, where can I find it..my dream: work life balance. A job designed in such a way that I don't have to sacrifice at home to deliver at job or sacrifice at job to deliver at home..
In less than 20 days, I get back to work. This world has seen me go through job-life. I used to love the challenge at work. So many evenings/nites/weekends were all sunk in work and sometimes, I even enjoyed it! Doing well and moving up the career ladder was extremely important not just to my ego but also to my understanding of who I really am! Now, all that is out of the window. I am not saying that I want to sit at home and take care of my daughter. All I am saying is that office work doesn't seem to head my list of important things. I love this transformation and fear it at the same time.
Fear, because I am in search of Utopia - Work Life Balance.
Is it a myth?a fairy tale which ends 'and they lived happily ever after' but all of us know, there is no happily ever after. That is because life is a journey and not a destination. I haven't heard one soul among my friends say that they have a good work life balance. Everyone seems to be struggling to spend time with their families, spend enough time with work, network and stay happy. In the scrambling to find happiness and peace, we all quite miss out on enjoying the journey of life. What I really don't understand is why work environments are designed the way they are. Doesn't everyone realize that such designs only add stress to their lives. The stress seeps in and creates restlessness in family lives. But wait, it doesn't stop there. It also creeps into work life and creates shoddy deliverable. Why don't companies simply realize that a happy employee means a longer and sustainable profit for the firm?
In this day and age of global competition, employers push for working beyond geographical boundaries. While it seems great that we have 24 hr stores, helplines, ATMS, it also means that someone is working beyond his 8 hr day..his/her 40 hr week. Many of my friends can vouch for the pain of working beyond time zones and boundaries, simply to deliver faster (the better is lost in translation!). Do we really need instant gratification and success in $$ at the cost of happiness? Oh like the companies really care!
To me it seems like running on the treadmill to stay in place. ..rush to work, rush to meetings, rush to reply to emails, rush through lunch..the list is endless. It seems like people just want to get done with their job and rush back home to rush through the rest of their day. And it finally dawns on 31st Dec every year..the ultimate question: How did this year fly by? Promptly 'Will do better this year' follows.. How can one break this cycle?
So, where can I find it..my dream: work life balance. A job designed in such a way that I don't have to sacrifice at home to deliver at job or sacrifice at job to deliver at home..