By far the most common conversation we have with the folks we interview is about work-life balance. Starting a business or pursuing a creative career makes finding work life balance really tough because there is no clear start and end to one’s work day. We’ve shared some of our conversations on the topic below.

Laura Rose | Vocal Embodiment Faciliator & Creative Mentor

I am passionate about work-life balance. When I started my business in 2010, fresh out of college, I lived and breathed it. I stayed up late playing music gigs and woke up early to see music therapy clients. I thought my heart was full, making a living doing what I love. Barely 2 years into my career, I experienced deep existential burn out. Like, inexplicable hives all over my body, burn out. Something needed to shift. I got curious and started to study how experienced, successful professionals were managing their lives. I learned that I needed better boundaries. How was I going to serve the amount of people I am here on this planet to serve, if I did not honor my boundaries. Read more>>

Alicia Kuo | Photographer

As a full-time college student, my work-life balance is something that tends to fluctuate. Balancing the work I need to put towards school and the work I need to put towards my photography is something that I’m still working on. I think this balance is fluid because what works for me one month might not necessarily work for me during the next month. Overall, being able to balance everything I need to do comes down to being organized and maintaining a good level of flexibility with everything else in my life. Read more>>

Greg Kuchan | Real Estate Consultant

I think the idea of “balance” is a myth. Just like multitasking, you cannot efficiently do two things at once. Life is more of a pendulum and the goal is to keep the swing between work and life even. Catching myself as soon as possible when the pendulum has swung to far out for to long in one direction is key to a happy and successful life. My mornings are my time to fill my cup. When the surf is good I am in the ocean, when the weather is bad I am rock climbing and I am always up to try out something new. When I have a successful morning, the rest of my day goes smooth and I am capable of giving my best to all my clients. Over the years I have become more efficient with my time. That allows me to focus more on the tasks I am currently doing and no longer have the feeling of fomo. Which from the outside looking in appears as balance. Read more>>

Mo Ghori | Strength and Conditioning Coach

Work life balance is for “workers”s only, not business owners. There is no such thing as business life balance. None. There are very few hyper successful business owners who last over time without getting wiped out. There is a reason why there is only 1% of people who have an absurd amount of wealth. Because every second of their lives is spent on achieving a goal, which used to be a dream. There is no balance in my life. Each day has to be more efficient and goal oriented than the one before, or it is a day wasted. I move my necessities around my goal and not the other way round. Workouts, meals, socializing, leisure….they all take a back seat to the expectations I have for myself. The necessities in life (health, relationships etc) need to be managed efficiently so they do not get in the way of your path, your business, your passion, your success. Read more>>

Katie Markel | Kinesiologist, Holistic Health Coach, CEO and Founder of NBalance

Finding balance to grow a company, foster relationships, and give back to myself has been an ever-evolving process since day one. In the beginning, I thought I had to control being able to keep everything in perfect balance. That I was somehow failing if I couldn’t keep it all under control all the time. When I came to the understanding that finding balance works like a teeter totter, the weight of achieving this for myself lightened. A teeter totter never remains in perfect equilibrium for long. And that’s okay because that’s part of the fun. The side going down boosts the other to go higher! I’ve found when your support system is solid and your company is run with the intention to improve lives, the same effect is seen. The two sides boost each other. Read more>>