Many will undoubtedly read this interesting article about mother-of-nine Helena Morrisey with an eye to the proportion of women in the boardroom, that ongoing debate about equality and glass ceilings and so on. However, for me, I was struck by something else altogether. Working with any number of stressed-out executives, C-suite and aspiring thereto, I am struck by the other age-old question about work-life balance. How do we manage to be fully engaged at work without our home lives suffering?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-31289124
Here’s Ms. Morrisey recipe for success: “I have to ruthlessly prioritise, but I also have to be very, very controlled with my time,” she says.
Reminds me of that evergreen management tool: the glass jar, large stones, pebbles, sand and water. Take a large glass jar and fill it first with large stones representing the priorities in life: self-care and support, professional aspirations, personal relationships, health and vitality, finances, creativity. Then add in the pebbles representing the next layer of priorities in life: perhaps community, spiritual exploration, hobbies, entertainment, reading, travelling. Next pour in the sand: clothing, laundry, cleaning, vehicle maintenance and so on. Water? Well, everything else. You’ve already figured out that if we reverse the process, starting with water then sand, it’s unlikely there’ll be room for the pebbles and stones.
Deciding what constitutes the stones, the pebbles, the sand and water can be quite a task. If you’d like to help to figure this out, call or contact me to set up a time to talk. May be one of the most important steps you’ve ever taken.