What’s the right balance between work and non-work time? The traditional 9-5 has slowly disappeared with the emails and zoom and texting going far beyond traditional business hours. We asked members of our community to share with us how they think about work-life balance.

Ana DiGiallonardo | Artist

The way I view my work/life balance is in two periods of time: B.B. (before baby) & A.B. (after baby). Before I had my son in August 2019, I was working full-time as a Marketing Coordinator for a large General Contractor in Southern California. I spent my weekends rekindling my passion for art by painting as much as I could, starting with watercolors and then eventually acrylics. It felt like a very easy work/life balance because I had a set 8-5 schedule during the week and the weekends were always time for myself. Read more>>

Ella Sophie | Visual Artist & Commercial Photographer

As a freelance artist there is this little voice in my head that tells me to hustle nonstop. But I’ve learned over the years to tell that internal voice not to be afraid. I have to remind myself that there is a constant ebb and flow to the workload. Some months are booked solid – overbooked if I let that voice get the best of me. And some months are slow. Being able to create an existence with work life balance is a privilege that I wish more freelancers would embrace. Of course we have bills to pay, but if you burn yourself out you won’t be able to do anything well. Read more>>

Alexandra Hulme | Holistic Health Coach, Teacher & Artist

Oh yes, balance — this is a big one for me! The lack of balance I was living with in my former life is what divinely re-routed me into the health & wellness industry ushering me into becoming a transformational guide and advocate for others going through something similar. In my early 30’s I was dealing with a lot of stress, living “la vida loca” abroad, had let go of any healthy habits I’d previously created and soon fell to the floor from what was a total and utter burnout. Read more>>

Jeanne Heileman | Founder, Tantra Flow Yoga

In the first 20 years of teaching yoga, every moment of my life was about yoga. I was practicing yoga, studying yoga, attending yoga workshops on free weekends, teaching a full schedule, and saying yes to any sub job that came along. It was yoga, yoga, yoga. As I built my school I needed the time after teaching to do all of the administrative work, write the manual and research material so that I could feel worthy of stepping into the role of founder of a new school. I worded on my computer until late at night, then got up to do the full day again. Read more>>

Daniel Cunningham | Commercial photographer

I have a wife and two children. Work life balance is important to me. I have found a few ways that help me keep time for not only myself but with my family. Before Children I was always focused on work. I would let little things upset me or be fearful people did not like my work, if i did not immediately hear back from them. I also felt like I had to do every single step or process of my business. Once my daughter was born I needed to change things in order to get my work done and not be stressed about it. I would not answer emails on the weekend knowing it could wait till Monday. Read more>>

Kev Luu | Music Producer & Audio Engineer

Work-life balance as a creative person is almost an oxymoron. Team No Sleep is often celebrated and sometimes even encouraged, but I can still clearly hear my father telling me as a young boy, to not burn the candle on both ends. When first starting my career as a music producer and audio engineer, I feared if I didn’t say yes to every opportunity that passed my way, I would miss my BIG SHOT and not achieve the dreams that my family and I have sacrificed so much for. Being this “yes-man” had led me to work 30-hour recording sessions, double booking gigs, falling asleep during times when my attention was needed, and doing damage to my physical and mental health that I still deal with to this day. Read more>>

Alice Kimm | Principal, John Friedman Alice Kimm Architects (JFAK); Co-founder, Open Source Homelessness Initiative (OSHI)

Today, the importance of achieving a meaningful work-life balance is being acknowledged everywhere – which is why I selected this question to expand on. As a woman in partnership with my husband, running a design practice, directing a nonprofit organization we co-founded in 2020, and with three kids all still in school, I think about this a lot – not just in the context of my own life and work, but with respect to our kids, our staff (many still in their twenties), and the students we mentor. Read more>>

Stephanie Mercado | Story Artist / Illustrator / Fabricator

When I first started working, I threw myself into my work. The quote that says “If you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life” was echoing in my head. I’m one of the few people who get to make a living as an artist. Work life balance was not apart of my vocabulary. I also felt like I had to prove myself to both the people who told me to give up and to myself. Read more>>

Stephanie Stuart | Marilyn Monroe Tribute Artist and Live Entertainment Performer/Producer

My work/life balance has not always been healthy. The tendency to say “yes” to every opportunity forced other aspects of my life to suffer. Maintaining balance in my work-life is crucial to my mental and physical well-being. I don’t have to take on everything; it’s ok to say “no”, and I am much healthier for it. During the pandemic, most performers were out of work for longer than they had ever been. So, for me, hitting full force into this new open world meant I felt that balance shift in the opposite direction and I had difficulty saying “no” since we had spent more than a year without work. Read more>>

Stephanie Ertl | Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, Licensed Acupuncturist

I think balance in all aspects of life is the key to living happily and healthy. Especially as an Acupuncturist, my main job is to keep peoples’ physical bodies and energetic connections balanced! For many people work-life balance is tough in this day and age. For me personally, there are routine things that I incorporate into my daily life that keep me happy and energetically available to give my patients the best treatment as possible. One thing in particular that I never compromise is my work out. Read more>>

Kendra Saylor | Leather Accessories Designer

My work life and social life both cater to my love of leather in a pretty cohesive manner. Whether it’s getting a group of friends together to attend a day at San Francisco’s Folsom street fair or other events like Off Sunset Festival, Torture Garden,Crusie LA andBar Sinister, Soft Leather, friends and leather fashion are always involved. Read more>>

Dairian Roberts | Occupational Therapist & Lactation Consultant

When I first started my career as an occupational therapist, I had no problem working long hours and overtime. I lived by the phrase “work hard, play hard”. In 2017, I was expecting my first child, working full time in a very intense hospital setting including intensive care units. After a traumatic birth experience, I had a radical shift of perspective on work/life balance. I knew I wanted to find a more flexible work situation. I didn’t return to the hospital and started working as an independent contractor and developing a business plan. Deep down, I knew that I wanted to work for myself and use my skills to help my community. Read more>>

Jessyca Smith | Creator and owner

Availability to my family! Not having to ask anyone for “permission” for a day off to take my daughter to an appointment or somewhere fun! Not having to wait for a time off request to be approved in order to spend time with my loved ones. Learning that my time is truly mine has been extremely eye opening. I am able to have balance because I don’t have to answer to anyone. I am my own boss! I am able to take a break from work when I need to and not get too overwhelmed. Read more>>

Jessi Beebe | Disabled Jewelry Maker

For me personally work/life balance looks a bit different than it does for most small business owners. I’m disabled with multiple chronic illnesses (meaning illnesses that there is not currently a cure for), so a big part of my work/life balance is resting. When I first became too sick to work a traditional job I would run myself into the ground trying to make jewelry so hopefully I could sell some of it and still feel like i was being productive. Of course burnout is a very real thing even in physically healthy people, and for a chronically ill person the effects are even worse. Read more>>

TEHANA FATIMA WEEKS | Actor, Director, Producer & Community Development Director for We Make Movies

Self care and personal well being are extremely important to me which makes having a healthy work life balance essential. On most days, I am very good about “clocking out” after a certain time and/or after putting in a set amount of hours. I’m not as tied to my phone and other devices as most people, so when I decide I’m finished for the day, usually, I’m able to completely shutdown all aspects of work and focus on me. In addition to setting these boundaries, I do my best to indulge in the things I enjoy. Read more>>

Sasha Nicole | Founder, The Shine Side

Work life balance has been a very important aspect of my life, especially over the last two years as a Master’s student, a full-time employee, and business owner. In the past I had trouble managing my priorities and boundaries, as I rarely provided myself space to decompress. I made the common mistake that most of us do, early on in my career I was eager to take on more projects and hustle, not always thinking about self-care. I am thankful for the work I have done, and experience I have but for years there was an imbalance between my work and life. Read more>>