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.

Margaret Alba | Multi-Disciplinary Artist

My work life balance has shifted significantly during the last two years with covid. The time working from home revealed the cracks in my ‘hustle’ mentality. I used to assign so much of my identity to the work that I do and how much time I put in. As a result, I said yes to projects I wasn’t aligned with. I established an unattainable bar of perfection and overworked myself – leading to inevitable burnout. Read more>>

Aisha Ross | Founder of Less Is More

I have always been a huge advocate for work life balance. So many people spend the majority of their life working, especially working a job they can’t stand, rather than spending their life doing what truly makes them happy. I feel extremely grateful to be doing what I love and to be my own boss. It makes me happy to see other businesses going in a direction to focus on balance, like allowing their employees to work remotely, or get Friday’s off, etc. Read more>>

John Charles Nagy | Actor & Writer

My wife, Megan, and I had a baby girl back in October (we love you Litte Miss Iz!) so needless to say, our lives and priorities have totally shifted in the last 4-5 months in the best way possible. It’s insane how immediately it sets in once your baby arrives; suddenly nothing else in the world is as important as spending time with them. And sure, they basically require around the clock attention for the first few months, but even on the hardest days filled with tears and frustrations (for all three of us!) – the moment they fall asleep in your arms, start smiling at you when they wake up, or hit a big milestone in their development, you forget all about the fact that maybe you didn’t get to every casting submission that day, or fold that load of laundry. Read more>>

Jake Cassman | Artist, Musician, Comedian, Educator

10 years ago — when I first started my band Drunken Logic — I didn’t spend any time thinking about work-life balance. I was working in a dueling piano bar full-time, busking a couple of times a week, finishing up school, and recording my first album. I wanted to do everything all the time, but particularly right now. I used to have a sign hanging above my computer that read “What are you going to do TODAY?”, as if I needed to guilt-trip myself into doing more than I was already doing. Read more>>

Sarah Scott | The Mommy Blogger

The quality of my work life balance depends on the stage of life I am currently in. Sometimes I have this wave of inspiration, energy, and passion, and in these moments. I ride the waves. Sometimes my energy is lower. I am really attuned to myself and adjust my energy in ways that feel most authentic. Overall, my family is my priority. I am grateful that I have a partner that pitches in more, when I am in a season of hyper focus on work. Read more>>

Alexander Arntzen | Film Composer

My Work/Life balance has certainly shifted in different directions over the years. I’ve always held a high priority on making sure I meet whatever deadlines I am under at the moment. For a long time I didn’t have an exact schedule. It was just a matter of getting done what clearly need to get done and then the rest of my life fell in line. Then I got big into Google Calendar and once I could actually SEE what I was really doing with my day (not as productive as I thought), I started enacting a pretty strict schedule of when I worked which actually allowed me to feel more free when I wanted to relax or be with friends and family. These days, I have sort of doubled down on work. I am finding the more I give to it, the more it gives back to me. Read more>>

Keena Ferguson | Director. Actor. VO Artist. Writer. Coach for Content Creators

I have changed how I define work life balance. I don’t see it as an equal split that I am doing in perfect harmony at all times. That is just unrealistic and I don’t think its possible to uphold that. Everything can’t be getting a 100% of your time and YOU all the time. Instead, what I have tried to do is first accept that it won’t be a perfect balance and that I can only do what I can do. I want to make sure that I am present in whatever I am doing and enjoying the process of what I am giving my time to at that moment. Read more>>

Rose Junie Abito | Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist- Group therapy practice owner

Living and working in LA for the last 10 years has reinforced my hustle mentality. Additionally, as a first generation Filipino-American, I was raised to constantly perform, to be the best, and to never bring shame to the family name. Filipinos are known to be hard working, multitaskers, and to put pride and dedication to their work. At the core of this work ethic is the Filipino obligation (to bring honor to parental wishes and needs). Read more>>

Chelsea Kossower | Vice President of Sales and Business Development at Puffco

When you work at a startup, you do whatever you can to keep the ball moving forward. You work long hours but you’re doing what you love so it’s not really work. It’s interesting to try to quantify balance when you’re so involved and can identify so much with the mission that it isn’t really work for you. It can feel difficult to separate yourself from a company that has such a clear vision and amazing people. I’m really lucky to work for a company like Puffco because while we are a business, Puffco is focused on people first so they respect and encourage people to set their own boundaries. Read more>>

Mada Atoms | Music Artist, Producer

What I find is balance differs from each individual. In my case my default is to go all in on a project or activity with full immersion. Some people are scared of this sink or swim approach, but I find full immersion is the most sure fire way to expedite gains in any creative or business endeavor. The issue with this approach is balance in our personal and professional lives can have an impact. Read more>>

Guillermo Bale | Content producer & Musician

I would say for me the balance has changed a lot throughout my career, In the upside, I think as we grow older, we learn how to be more efficient and do the work faster. We also learn how to menage our emotions better, so it becomes a little easier to leave work outside of home and not get so stressed with daily challenges at work. Read more>>