Just like the keyword ‘work and life balance’ was used like an eternal verity, these days the ‘uselessness of work and life balance’ seems to lift up its head. To be honest, it’s already been a long time since GRANHAND started to internally share (or force) our values on work and life balance. That work and life balance has been a delusion and that work and life are not separate concepts to begin with.
Most people spend half of their waking hours at work. Whether they like it or not, ‘work’ is already taking up most of their ‘lives’. No matter how much the time spent after work or during the weekends is pleasant, if people can’t feel the sense of accomplishment and fun from ‘work’, then the happiness they feel can’t help but be half as well. On the other hand, people who feel joy out of work will fill majority of their lives with positivity and become the enviable existence in the world.
Including those of you who are reading this article, do you remember that no one even thought about securing their work and life balance during their senior year preparing for college? The real match in life is not even about college but rather the moment people first set foot in the society. Besides, at that point most people have close to ‘zero’ experience and capability. Even so, and ironically enough, they seem to be hypnotized under the concept ‘work and life balance’ the second they get a job. As if it’s like some kind of a mission by the absolute, people fear that they might be unfortunate if they can’t secure this balance in their lives. That’s why they feel like they are losing something important when work takes over their lives even a bit, and feel safe thinking that they’ve protected themselves the less they work.
Nik Wallenda crossing the Niagara Falls. © Niagara Falls Canada
How much emotion and energy do we spend to maintain the balance? Trying to tightrope-walk called ‘balance’ between the big concept of work and life. But on that tightrope, you can neither gain work nor life.
The true work and life balance that GRANHAND pursues is the calm and relaxed mind that only the influential people that have reached a certain stage in any fields. There are not many seniors who teach juniors who dream of becoming a hair designer gently and kindly. Only the time spent late night after work when everyone else has left, to practice the things they’ve learned over one’s shoulder during a tough day, can truly build up as my ability and become a value that can be returned as money in society. If one is obsessed with the meaningless concept of ‘9 to 6 and yet longs to become a person that achieves so many things, it’s no different than envying the highlight of K-POP idols while ignoring the pain and perseverance that they had to go through to debut as the best boy/girl bands.
Just like the keyword ‘work and life balance’ was used like an eternal verity, these days the ‘uselessness of work and life balance’ seems to lift up its head. To be honest, it’s already been a long time since GRANHAND started to internally share (or force) our values on work and life balance. That work and life balance has been a delusion and that work and life are not separate concepts to begin with.
Most people spend half of their waking hours at work. Whether they like it or not, ‘work’ is already taking up most of their ‘lives’. No matter how much the time spent after work or during the weekends is pleasant, if people can’t feel the sense of accomplishment and fun from ‘work’, then the happiness they feel can’t help but be half as well. On the other hand, people who feel joy out of work will fill majority of their lives with positivity and become the enviable existence in the world.
Including those of you who are reading this article, do you remember that no one even thought about securing their work and life balance during their senior year preparing for college? The real match in life is not even about college but rather the moment people first set foot in the society. Besides, at that point most people have close to ‘zero’ experience and capability. Even so, and ironically enough, they seem to be hypnotized under the concept ‘work and life balance’ the second they get a job. As if it’s like some kind of a mission by the absolute, people fear that they might be unfortunate if they can’t secure this balance in their lives. That’s why they feel like they are losing something important when work takes over their lives even a bit, and feel safe thinking that they’ve protected themselves the less they work.
Nik Wallenda crossing the Niagara Falls. © Niagara Falls Canada
How much emotion and energy do we spend to maintain the balance? Trying to tightrope-walk called ‘balance’ between the big concept of work and life. But on that tightrope, you can neither gain work nor life.
The true work and life balance that GRANHAND pursues is the calm and relaxed mind that only the influential people that have reached a certain stage in any fields. There are not many seniors who teach juniors who dream of becoming a hair designer gently and kindly. Only the time spent late night after work when everyone else has left, to practice the things they’ve learned over one’s shoulder during a tough day, can truly build up as my ability and become a value that can be returned as money in society. If one is obsessed with the meaningless concept of ‘9 to 6 and yet longs to become a person that achieves so many things, it’s no different than envying the highlight of K-POP idols while ignoring the pain and perseverance that they had to go through to debut as the best boy/girl bands.