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.

Dallen Taylor | Cross-Disciplinary Artist

“Work-life balance, huh? Well, let’s just say it’s been a bit of a tightrope walk for me. Running a video production company full-time while also trying to make music and pursue my hobby of rug-tufting can be a bit of a juggling act. But hey, if you can’t handle the heat, stay out of the craft room, am I right? In all seriousness though, over time I’ve learned to prioritize and make the most of my time. I make sure to schedule in time for both work and play, and I’ve come to realize that they can actually complement each other. Read more>>

Chrystle & Catherine Cu | Cocofloss Founder & Dentist (Chrystle) | Cocofloss Founder & CEO (Catherine)

As an entrepreneur, admittedly my work has always extended beyond the traditional 40 hour per week schedule. Some might call my schedule “unbalanced”… it is a lot of work, and it does spill over into my life with my husband and two kids. You’ll often find me taking product photography wherever I go, or responding to Slack messages while nursing my newborn. My frequent work-related travel now doubles as fun family adventure time! Read more>>

Tryn Cheng | Illustrator

Honestly it has been a great challenge transitioning from a student, having graduated this previous December, and becoming a freelance illustrator. Although my mind is already on track towards next steps into my career, my body is still in student mode. This past month after graduation I have found myself doing multiple all-nighters with back-to-back deadlines that have left me mentally drained. As a student, my entire schedule was preset, but now, especially as a freelancer, it’s very uncertain. I realized that going forward, it’s important to leave enough time to recharge so that I can bring my best self to the next project. Read more>>

Sun Bai | Illustrator

Since I started being a full time illustrator/comic author, I work every day at my home studio. As the work of illustration is often intense, I worked late at night, even on weekend evenings at the beginning. I always wanted everything to be perfect in my work. It was a lot of physical and psychological stress. Later, I started to make efforts to organize both work and life rhythm. Read more>>

Annie Stayer | Leather Artisan

My husband and I have been married for 19 years, our son is 17 and our daughter is 13……. within the past 8 years of having Thirteen Eleven Olive, work and life balance has changed so many times and has looked all sorts of different over the years lol. Honestly, I could never do this without the support of my husband. He’s the backbone, in so many areas. Read more>>