The Coronavirus has given many us an opportunity to pause and think about life, our purpose, and even the right work life balance. What’s your perspective and has it changed over time?

Murray Valeriano | Writer. Comedian. Surfer.

When I first started out, balancing life and career, or the pursuit of a career, was fairly easy. It was just me and I love what I do, so I had no problem immersing myself in the work. Now that I am older and have a family, the balance is a bit more difficult. Having a chid and being a comedian can cause problems, like when I get home at 3am and he gets up 6am. That’s rough. And it’s kind of a drag to go out on the road and leave the family behind. But, another comic, who is a father, and I did the math once. Being that we are home during the week and out on the weekends, we actually spend more time with our children than if we worked a 9-5 job 5 days a week. Read more>>

J.J. McQueen | Visual Media Journalist

I’m always worked hard to maintain balance. Most days I get it right but there are times when there is none. Read more>>

Lauren Bilanko | Entrepreneur

Since the Pandemic I have put a lot more thought into the idea of a WORK / LIFE balance. I am an extremely creative individual and I have always considered my WORK to be my LIFE. In order to find a healthy balance, I started to think about PRODUCTIVITY and PLAY. I calculated how much time I spent on everything I did each day for a month. This allowed me to very clearly see what influences had a positive and negative effect on my life. I am not someone who adheres well to a rigid daily schedule, so in order to change my habits, I had to get creative in disciplining myself intuitively to find this balance. I started with an outlined schedule until I found my rhythm, and now I adjust each day as needed, cutting out the things that have a negative effect so I can maintain a clear and creative mind. I break my day up into 8 hours of PLAY, 8 hours of PRODUCTIVITY, and 8 hours of SLEEP. Typically PLAY and PRODUCTIVITY are intermixed, allowing PLAY to provide necessary breaks. Read more>>

Jessica Santana | Social Entrepreneur and Social Justice Advocate

What I am most proud of this year is the way I managed my time in the startup jungle amid everything that was going on in the world. I am not perfect at work-life balance yet, but I think I have definitely mastered 99% of the skill. Here are my top five work-life balance strategies for founders building startups: Done is better than perfect: My schedule is always crazy. Between managing my personal and professional responsibilities, I’ve hacked the art of “being done”. Perfectionism is valuable, but at some point it can stop you from progressing. Whether it is taking a fourth look at your deck, having someone read your email three times before you send it off or using 10 of your friends to read a post before you hit “publish”, think again! Time is something you cannot get back. Not everything is a high priority item that requires your full attention. Read more>>

Hailey Losselyong | Visual Artist

I was in a toxic relationship with my work life balance starting the day I graduated high school. When I graduated, leave home and gained all of these new responsibilities, I quickly (maybe not so quickly) realized that for most of my life a “work-life balance” had been served to me on a platter. Parents, Teachers, Coaches, etc. the authority figures in my life provided guidance and structure on a day to day basis. But flash forward to that transition from high school to college and all of the sudden I’m paying for school so I’m even more responsible for getting myself to class, getting to work, making meals, studying, socializing?, staying healthy and ultimately being told I need to hurry up and figure out what I want to do for the rest of my life. Read more>>

Jessy Burris | Fashion Designer

Running a small business and being employed full time in fashion is nearly burning the candle at both ends. As far as balance, it’s all about pacing yourself to the dance of the responsibilities. I used to be such a bad procrastinator in school! But good art takes time, and knowing my artistic side needs that meander, I know to give myself that time in order to keep the procrastination monsters at bay. I find that structuring your hours and certain days of the week to give yourself permission to be the artist will allow for the best, uninterrupted creativity. For me, I find it helpful unplugging from devices to see the magic in nature to spark new ideas. That meditation unlocks areas of our mind that want to get off the linear monotony of digital. There is a great Ted Talk by Tim Urban that illustrates this perfectly. Read more>>

Ashley Barnum | Mom, Nurse, Hyaluron Pen Educator, Mentor, and PMU Artist

As a mother of 4 children, A 14 year old Mater Dei Football Athlete; USA Taekwondo Nationally Ranked Blackbelt Sparring Champion, a 12 year old 7x Cheerleading National Champion, a 3 year old high energy and creative preschooler, and an independent and busy 1 year old— Ive always been asked and or told “How do you do it?” or “I dont know how you do it?.” Balance is difficult to come by when you live in a busy athlete driven household— are super involved with your children’s activities— A Full time RN student, and as a business owner I have learned to ADAPT. Read more>>

Sam X | Music Producer, Songwriter, Audio Engineer & Teacher

When I began my foray into the music industry, I was set on working non-stop until I achieved my goals. I worked day and night, seven days a week, for two to three years straight, without taking any time off and jumping on any opportunity that presented itself. That was when I burned out – and when I say burned out, I mean like a campfire drowning in an avalanche. I was down for the count and couldn’t dig myself out of the rut that had formed where I used to find my creativity. Getting to that low point where I couldn’t even write or produce music was what showed me the inherent necessity of developing a sustainable work-life balance. I started with self-care – something I had spent my entire life neglecting up until that point. Read more>>