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.

Taylor Vo | Photographer & Techie

Balancing various aspects of life, like work, family, and personal well-being is so tough especially when you first start out in your career and are trying to establish yourself in the workplace and separate yourself. Over time, I’ve learned and experienced that over-working and pushing yourself to the point of burnout doesn’t necessarily help you excel in your career but instead push you towards always finding ways to “get to the weekend” instead of enjoying every day as you should. Overtime I realized that I needed to prioritize my personal hobbies, set boundaries in work place and communicate with others around me more frequently in order to accomplish my goals. Read more>>

Alixandra Kos | Makeup Artist

I feel that finding a good work life balance is a struggle everyone has. When i was younger i had an all or nothing approach to most things in my life. If i wasn’t working towards something full force then i didn’t think it deserved my time or attention. Now that i’m getting older i’ve shifted my way of thinking. I’ve realized how important it is to have multiple things in your life that bring you happiness. The more I have tapped into my ability to multitask & juggle things the more joy has come to me in my life & career. Read more>>

Jessica Sanam Hekmat | Entrepreneur + Writer

My perspective on “balance” has definitely shifted over the years, especially as I’ve gotten clear on what I need for my optimal health, how I want to focus my energy, and the newer roles and responsibilities I have as a partner and parent. I prefer the phrase “work-life integration.” To me, that means your professional ambitions are informed by your personal values – so that every choice you make is not about just showing up for a job, but inviting you and allowing you to do your life’s work. Read more>>

Juliet Wang | Experimental Filmmaker & Microtonal Musician

My original plan was always to make a living crewing on film sets. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I had taken a leave of absence from the film school I was attending, and I started working on sets full-time. Thinking back, I suppose my feelings had been slowly building for years, but they didn’t quite crystalize until I went on this particular two-week TV drama set. There is a line from a novel, GIOVANNI’S ROOM, that goes, “It seemed to happen all at once—I suppose that only means that it had been happening for a long time.” Read more>>

Kerry Chaplin | Rabbi, Ritualist, Spiritual Counselor

Life is a rhythm in which love, faith, fear, courage – everything really, including balance – come and go. And that’s okay. Sometimes, we think there’s some kind of magic balance we can achieve once and for all. But it’s more like riding a bike. I push on one side and then the other, and then the other. It’s a rhythm that doesn’t stop – until it does. When I’m aware of this rhythm, I feel the wind on my skin and I feel alive (sometimes… also sometimes, it’s just hard). Read more>>

Dedan Brozino | President, Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation & Chief Development Officer, Rose Bowl Stadium

We all learned a lot from the C-19 pandemic; virtual work, figuring out self-motivation, and obviously had much more time to reflect than normal. With that said, I believe we are busier now than we were in pre-Covid times…. more productive, too. I bring this up because I feel like that period of time taught us all how to be more intentional with our decision-making regarding work life balance. Read more>>

Oxana Khan | Interior Designer

I work as an interior designer, a profession that demands complete dedication to my projects. Constant learning, attending master classes, conferences, and interacting with colleagues and clients are all essential aspects of my career. Striking a harmonious equilibrium between my professional and personal life has been my ultimate aspiration. Throughout history, achieving work-life balance has posed a unique challenge for women, primarily due to entrenched traditional gender roles and societal expectations. Read more>>