24 hours in a day, 168 hours in a week. Junior investment bankers regularly work 80-90 hours a week. Many other high profile professions require the same level of commitment. Often those on the outside claim that working 80-90 hours a week is bad/wrong/terrible/silly/etc but we’ve spoken with so many folks who say working that much has been the best decision of their life – it allowed them to develop a deep and strong skill set far faster than would have been possible otherwise. In other words, by working 2x the hours, they were able to generate 5x or more the rewards. And depending on where you are in your career, investing heavily in your skills and competence can pay dividends for a long time.

Joannie Lee | Entrepreneur, Mentor, Massage Therapist and Ergonomist

My work/ life balance has changed immensely overtime. When I first started my business, I said “yes” to every client, even if I worked every day. In the massage/ spa industry, it can be seasonal, so when it came time to working a lot, I felt like I had to, so I can save that money for reserves. I am now in my 22nd year providing massage to the San Diego community and running Two Hands Wellness Events. If I’ve learned anything about work/life balance, it’s knowing what your boundaries are. This is to prevent any injury and to make sure I have time for me and don’t get overwhelmed. I currently max out at 3 hours of massage, 4 days out of the week. I take weekends off, I hired 2 assistants and now, I am able to breathe and focus on me and my family. Read more>>

Rachel Barazone | Account Executive for Biophora Medical-Grade Skincare and Licensed Aesthetician

Over the years, I have always made work a priority. This has helped me gain advanced experience in my field and drive my passion for what I do deeper. I have found that making work a priority has also provided me with positive distractions from things in my personal life that may have not been going so well. I have looked at my job opportunities as sort of a gift that has helped mold me to become a smarter and more motivated person. At the same time, I poured so much energy into my work that I began to experience periodic burn out. Read more>>

Katrina Murphy | Lifestyle Motherhood Photographer

Without a doubt, I will always be that energetic busy-bee type of a person. I am never one to sit and relax, I love to create and to explore. However, when I now hear words like “work life balance”, it has taken on a whole different meaning than when starting my business. Now a mother to four little ones (ages 8,5,3 and 1) my time is not only busy, but more valuable. It’s so cliche, but we literally blink and our littles ones are growing and changing. This has given me a different outlook on running things even more efficiently on the back-end of my business, and being more mindful of when I schedule sessions to not miss out on important family time. Read more>>