Our community is filled with hard-working, high achieving entrepreneurs and creatives and so work-life balance is a complicated, but highly relevant topic. We’ve shared some responses from the community about work life balance and how their views have evolved over time below.

Patricia Morgan, PhD | Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Consultant, Educator, & Entrepreneur

I’ve been more conscious of work-life balance after watching the movie, “Eat Pray Love” five years ago. It prompted me to look at my life as more than just checklists and to value life’s unique experiences (good and bad). After watching that movie, I made a promise to embrace the unknown and see 50 states and 50 countries in 5 years. I’m currently at 44 and 48 respectively, but due to COVID, I will not make the 5-year timeline. I look forward to continuing my travels when it’s safe to do so. I value those moments because I get to log out of work and be in the moment. I place my phone on airplane mode and only use it to take pictures and find directions. This is one tactic, and I am admittedly still trying to find the right balance. My goal is to eventually have a four-day workweek for me and my team. Life is more than working – even if you’re doing something you love. Read more>>

Daisy McCellan | Artist and Teacher

Ever since I became a mom my work life balance has completely changed. Long gone are the days where I had the freedom to work all day (and night) working out one creative idea. Now I have to be very deliberate about my creative time and work quickly because there are only a few hours each day (if I am lucky!) where I don’t have a child crawling on me or calling out for me. In the newborn days, I would strap my son on my chest and take him to my brick and mortar store, gather in San Francisco and all the customers would o and ah over him. Soon my other two sons were born and quickly a little kids play area was formed behind the counter and that’s when it started to get more challenging. I got very good at working efficiently during their naps and after they went down for the night but I always felt like I needed more time. Eventually I realized we needed help – we had no family nearby to lean on. Read more>>

Victoria Leftridge | Mental Health Therapist, Consultant and Speaker

For the first few years of my career, work-life balance was almost non-existent. I spent many hours making sure that my clients were ok but not myself. It took the pandemic to really make sure that I was working on myself and giving myself the proper self-care. I use to think by doing the clique things such as bubble baths and pedicures was real self-care and balance. I found out that boundaries were really the work-life balance self-care act I needed to master. Quite frankly – I knew I had to quit my full-time job and focus on my business and personal growth Now work-life balance looks like cultivating experiences to check in with myself and be present with myself. I make sure that I do little things like not checking my phone for the first 30 minutes I am await and going outside everyday even if it’s just to sit on the porch. The balance really has to be focus on what you are able to do that feels good outside of being productive. There is a time for work and a time for rest and a time for play. Make sure you include them all and learn to say NO when it doesn’t work for you. Read more>>

Hamilton Hayes | Musician & YouTuber

I think something a lot of creatives overlook is a balance between art for-profit versus art for yourself. When grinding at a young age in a creative field I would say 10 times out of 10 you’re going to be working with something you’re passionate about – something that brings you joy as an individual. And when you’re young and not making money and focusing on getting good at that passion you tend to do all of your work for yourself. But as you grow up and become better and start taking on clients it can become harder and harder to find time to express yourself just for you. For me, a major key to sustaining my balance from my art is asking myself one question when I start to have that feeling of wanting to create something. I ask myself “do I need this or does the world need this?” And usually, when I answer that question I find myself enjoying my art for myself much more often. Read more>>

Eileen Buelt | Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Psychotherapist

I’ve worked in mental health for 20 years and work life balance has not come easy. I have had to master the art of leaving work at the office in order to be fully present for my family and friends outside of work. It’s about maintaining healthy boundaries and prioritizing your time and energy.  Early in my career, I often overextended myself and had trouble telling people “no.” I think many folks struggle with this. It’s really important to learn how to communicate your limits with others. At the end of the day, you have to stay true to your values. When I got better at maintaining work life balance, I felt a sense of relief and renewed energy about my work. Sometimes it’s a journey to find the right balance for you and that’s ok. Read more>>

Jordon Hull | Personal Trainer/Pro Bodybuilder

This is definetly something that takes some time to master. Still to this day I can find myself struggling with this because I try to be available to my clients as best I can. One thing I can say that has helped me managed this is start documenting everything whether it be a 15min phone call, an actual session that is booked, a follow up you have with a vendor, Updates to any clients plans, even dates or scheduled dinners. This way you always have complete visibility to what you have going on at all times and you can carve out time for yourself and what you need to do to recharge. Another HUGE point is to SET BOUNDARIES!! As everyone should know time is money, time is valuable and your time shouldn’t be wasted. So overall, i’ve just gotten more organized with my time management. Read more>>

Jamie Miles Haynes | Licensed Professional Therapist and Health and Fitness coach

Balance…what is balance anyway? I try to throw the whole term out the window. I think of balance as an anxiety producing term that society has taught us to chase to find. And when we don’t, it leads to anxiety about not doing enough, not being good enough, not succeeding enough, etc. You always feel like you failed at something when you don’t achieve the proverbial “balance” that everyone says you need to have. Especially work life balance. (Hello, try being a working mom!) What I tend to firmly lean into is recognizing and being able to list priorities in your life and what needs to take precedence at the time. Some weeks, it’s deadlines and projects at work, and yes, you may have to cancel that dinner date or miss happy hour with the girls. Other times, it’s kids’ doctor’s appointments or a family function and you have to put work to the side to be there for loved ones. Read more>>

Chelsea Haines | Designer | Illustrator | Photographer | Plant Parent

I was really fortunate to start out in the industry with a job that fostered a healthy work-life balance- something I find incredibly important to my creative success and mental health. Creativity can be very difficult to summon without a grounded headspace and external stimuli from activities outside of work (including rest!). Read more>>

Dr. Nicole McCarty | Integrative Health Doctor, Author, Wellness Coach, & Corporate Wellness Trainer

Work life balance is a bit of an anomaly AND quite elusive…kind of like a unicorn (you know, mythical creature that’s impossible to catch. Lol.) So as a result of my interpretation of it, I prefer to use the terms “harmony” and “balance” in conjunction with one another. It’s a concept I talk about in my book, G.L.O.W. Rx (Grow & Live Optimally Well): Your Practical Guide to Releasing Your Inhibitions, Finding Your Purpose, & Living Free, Healthy, & Whole. (Shameless plug 😊) The way I’ve structured my life and thought is to live with with the knowledge that these two terms are interdependent upon one another. One simply doesn’t exist without the other. I didn’t just arrive here out of the blue nor did I always operate in this perspective. I used to think about the traditional way of work-life balance and I found that it was nearly impossible to achieve without some level of frustration, exhaustion and unnecessary stress that I didn’t need. Read more>>

Kylie Odetta | Songwriter & Voiceover Artist

I went full time with my music career right after graduating high school at age 16. Being young and widely available, I filled my schedule to the brim with all things work related. I traveled nonstop, stayed up late recording in the studio, and was constantly working on something new and feeling guilty when I wasn’t. This kind of discipline and drive served me really well in making strides in my career but it served me really poorly in my social life and in my sustainable emotional health. I would go through cycles of pushing hard and then burning out and wanting to take a break from it all. 7 years later and I can happily say that I have a MUCH better work/life balance and am in a overall healthier state as a human being. I’ve learned how to say no, how to value rest and relationships, how to create boundaries, and how to live from a place of wholeness. Read more>>

AVE | Nashville Singer/Songwriter

For much of my life I’ve been very career driven. The discipline began with dance as I was on a competitive team beginning at just ten years old. Classes were every day after school and rehearsals, competitions and performances took up the weekends. But I never wanted it any other way. Missing out on social events didn’t bother me, but as I got to about fifteen I was starting to wonder how I could balance singing and dancing. I remember coming home from dance company rehearsal on Fridays and declining invites to the movies or sleepovers to write songs or beg my dad to take me to a karaoke night somewhere in town. It was then that my parents encouraged me to pick one or the other for a more healthy balance of my time. I continued dance classes but decided to leave the company in order to have weekends for gigging. By the time I was a senior in high school I had played 40 shows in the NYC area. Read more>>

Megan Coonelly | Artist

When I first started this business as full time artist, I was already balancing my time between my pregnancy, graduate school as well as the responsibilities of working at the university. I was convinced my future success had to live in grind culture. When the twins were sleeping, I was painting. When they did tummy time I was researching hashtags. I had already acclimated myself to routinely burning out. My work-life balance constantly shifts. As your children age, their needs change. Evolving as they have over the years has kept my work life balance in flux as well. Your business needs can shift. Not only was I watching my children grow but I was also faced with how my business grows as well? What shifts did I need to make to feel and be more successful. Read more>>

Latoya Johnston | CEO & Founder of Fresh Seed Glow

In the last two years my business has grown so much! Now that its become much more busier, I have to set aside a few hours everyday to get tasks done, and then I make the transition to my full time job. Read more>>

Kendrick Amadeus | Artist

First starting off as a designer I thought i had to keep my head down and work as much as i could, as hard as i could, for as long as i could because i thought that’s how you made it. Soon id find myself burnt out and taking a long hiatus in between projects and that would be on repeat for three years. Through that seemingly never ending cycle i found myself feeling discouraged because i felt like i was missing out on moments with friends and family and i still wasn’t where i wanted to be in life. Thats where the idea of balance kicked in for me. I realized taking hours or even days off wasn’t going to stop my forward moving momentum with my work but actually enhance it. In fact, continuing to work until i burned out was stoping my momentum because i would work and then not do anything for months until i felt like working again. Now, years later, i follow the simple rule of “Just live”. Read more>>

Michelle Martin | Artist, Blogger, and Educator

Prior to the pandemic, I worked to the point that I felt like I was always missing out on the important things especially as it related to family time. Now that we have been in this space for over a year, I have learned the importance of living in the now. I value the time I spend with my husband and children even more. I am enjoying watching them grow up even though the circumstances are different. I can be honest and say that there was no work/life balance for me prior to 2020. I was always on GO! Now, not only do I have it, I work hard to protect it. I think about balance from the point of understanding that it is essential for my peace. I love being able to walk away from my work to engage in my family time. Read more>>

Claudia Beltran | Relationship and Parenting Coach, creator of Bamboo Coaching

Something I learned from a Mindfulness teacher is that “Balance is to be with what is”. This means, we create balance in our life by accepting, flowing, and being with what life brings us, and in my case, life brought me children. We all say that when we have children, our life is never the same, and I agree. Parenting is an emotional roller coaster, but in that roller coaster is where I have found myself. Every rise and every descent has been my path to self discovery. Being a mom is the greatest experience I’ve had, and also, the most challenging. I thought balance was to have everything in order. The house clean, laundry done, meals prepared, and of course, enough time to exercise, read a book, and play with my daughters. When that was not happening, I became very frustrated and out of balance. However, once I learned that the messy kitchen, toys all over the floor, children crying, and mountains of dirty clothes are part of my life, I learned to be with what is. I learned to create balance. Read more>>

Desi Giles | Actor

I come from a family of entertainers. My grandfather was Johnny St.Cyr, who played the banjo with Louis Armstrong. According to my father, he traveled alot and wasn’t there for him. My dad was an actor, as well as an educator. According to my older brother, our dad moved from Las Vegas to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career… not TELLING nor having a desire to TAKE his family with him!?! So as I embarked on MY performing career, I was determined NEVER to neglect my family in my career pursuits! So I never took jobs that were far away or traveled. I purposed in my heart to ALWAYS be there for my children, and my wife. So it hasn’t been until my children were grown, independent and living their own lives that I decided to pursue acting as hard as possible!. Read more>>

Alex Jacobson | Director & Producer

Early into starting a company in 2017 both Jason and I were heavily influenced by the “wake up and grind” culture. You know, the whole “if you aren’t spending every waking moment of your existence on this you’re wasting your time” type mindset. That did work in the beginning, but it wasn’t healthy. It took me a while to realize, but doing that is the fastest way to burn out and become almost completely ineffective. I personally would be dreading waking up some days because I wasn’t taking any time to recharge; at the time I didn’t understand why I was so burnt out, but now looking back, I realize that I wasn’t taking care of myself. Read more>>

Winter Wheeler | Mediator, Arbitrator, & Attorney

My work-life balance looks very different from one day to the next! I work the equivalent of more than full-time and I am married with four children who are ages 3, 5, 7, and 9. My husband works a lot as well, so flexibility is key to keeping my family and businesses operating smoothly! Because of all this though, it is nearly impossible for me to create a firm schedule. Instead, I must have a lot of room to accommodate changes on relatively short notice. There are many, many days when I have to break my own flexibility rule. I am a mediator, which means I help people resolve legal disputes by helping feuding parties communicate and ultimately reach a resolution. If parties are making progress, but negotiations are moving slowly, we don’t stop and take a break because I need to go pick up kids or go home to make dinner. It just literally cannot work that way, so there are days when my career has to take a front seat simply because that day’s case demands it. Because there is almost no way for me to know in advance when I’ll be done mediating a case, I rely very heavily on my husband to pick up all of the slack on those days. Read more>>

Shelbey & Michael March | Coffee King & Queen of Black Bean Coffee Co

When starting any business, your time is needed. Almost every moment revolves around the building of the business. Once you have put the work in, mastered a few things, and worked out the kinks….it should be a little smoother. Nope, unfortunately, there are so many twists and turns on a daily basis, it could mentally take a toll on you. As much as I tried to push back, deligate, take “me time”, there was always someone that needed me, or just bumbared my personal space. I had no outlet, no time to grow or prioritize my life. Something had to be done, so I learned how to firmly say “NO”. No, you will not get my time, intemidate me, size me up, ask me personal questions and invade my space while conducting business….NO you will NOT do this anymore. I couldn’t hear myself think, moreless, be a mother and a wife on the level that I use to. So the hubster and I evaluated all the “things” that we were going through and desided, MOBILE will give us more of a work life balance. That’s what we did and we are loving the journey. Read more>>

Corey Reese | Photo & Marketing Expert

How has my balance changed over time? Wow that’s the million dollar question. At different times of my career I found myself working 24/7 for the business and taking no time to regroup and live life. Although the saying “When you’re doing what you love there is no separate from your work and your play” is true. Making time to live life will give you the much-needed time for selfcare, allow you to gain more clarity, and come back into the business with a fresh perspective. Work life balance is one of the most important things to master when operating and running your own business so my advice to anyone would be to plan life just like you plan tasks for the business. Read more>>

Keron Garraway | Home Inspector/Mentor

Before having a child, me and my wife would take random getaways at a moments notice, I would go to networking events, business dinners or have speaking engagements no matter the time or location I was there. Now that I’m a father, my priorities have definitely shifted towards my son. I find myself not wanting to be gone as much so that I can be around him, care for him and not miss those precious moments that I cannot get back. Growing up in a single parent household I know personally the effects of a father not being there, so refusing to allow that cycle to repeat itself is always my main goal. I see how my son watches and mimics me and it is mind blowing, heart warming and motivating all at the same time. So as a business owner, a father and a husband a work life balance is now part of my everyday life and my time is more precious than ever. Achieving a work life balance isn’t always easy or convenient but knowing what’s at stake, the sacrifices and hard work will always be worth it. Read more>>

Toni Bryce | Toni Bryce | Content Creator

Over time, I have made it a necessity to have a work/life balance. While managing a YouTube channel, focusing on getting my Bachelor’s degree, and an internship, securing time for me is something I truly value. Every weekend, I make sure to leave the house at least once for some leisure time to myself. This is an act of self-care that I believe every entrepreneur should establish into their weekly routines. Read more>>

Elissa Onda | Owner of Sweet Dream Sleepovers

When I first started out, I was willing to take on just about any opportunity thrown my way. As I have grown over the years, I value my time above all else and I am much more selective about accepting work. It’s so easy when you’re just starting out to justify working extremely long hours or running yourself into the ground but there comes a point in your business where as the old proverb goes “ you need to check yourself, before you wreck yourself”. To help keep everything in check, it is so important to set up clear boundaries in the beginning of each job so that your clients know exactly what they can expect from you. Read more>>

Dasha Shaw | Model, Speaker, and Content Creator

When I think balance I think of separation. I think of having multiple unrelated parts of my life that I am juggling, and while the hope is that you can always keep everything you are juggling in the air, there’s only a matter of time before something drops. Balance, to me, is unsustainable, so now, I aim for harmony. I work to make sure that everything in my life is aligned with who I am and how I want to live. The goal is for everything in my life to work cohesively together, so sometimes that means saying no to awesome opportunities that do not align with the vision I have for my life and the joy and peace I always ai Read more>>

Katelyn Farrugia | Actor, Accent Enthusiast & Experimental Baker

When I first started my career, balance was always on the back burner. I moved at full speed ahead without regard to my health, and even some relationships I had with friends, family, etc. I was constantly pursuing my career – checking for my next cmail at work, leaving my phone on at the dinner table, and even missing life events if I knew my career was on the line. I was hungry, always wanting more. But over the years, I’ve come to realize balance is an extremely necessary and illusive thing to obtain. It takes work, discipline and most importantly, time. Now, I keep my phone in my purse at dinner. I’m trying new things, not because it’ll enhance my resume, but because it enhances me as a person. We have to take self-care seriously and know when things are unhealthy for us. I’ve come to believe you never need to “find” balance; you create it. You prioritize it. When you build a house of cards, you don’t build it all to one side. You start by creating a base and giving care to each side, not giving too much to one or the other. Because when you do, the house tips. It falls. Read more>>

Olivia Kristin | Author & Photographer

Work life balance is extremely important to me. It is hard as a creative when you enjoy what you do, to learn when to stop working. Not to mention, when you’re passionate about your work, the people you impact and the overall quality of your business, you go into overdrive hoping you don’t ever let anyone down. With this being said, it took me years to realize that it’s okay for me to stop! It’s okay for me to have business hours, respond to an email or text a day later, say no to an offer, and raise my prices so that I can work less and hire help! I feared I would lose clientele when I began to implement these boundaries and honestly, I did. But my overall quality of life is much better because of it. Work life balance is key to surviving in business. Without balance, what you love and enjoy can quickly become something you despise. Read more>>

Kenesha Cook | Media Marketing & Business Owner

My work life balance has changed over time because I’ve learned to put myself first. We as a society will do everything else to help others to succeed but won’t invest in ourselves, and I’ve finally learned to invest/bet on myself. At this point in my life I only put my time and energy into things that I’m passionate about. That’s why I started my own business. It’s a Lip Gloss line called Kissable By KPC (Letters at the end are my initials). I enjoy making all of my products myself. I make natural ingredient Lip Gloss, Body Butter, Lip Scrub, and a Body Scrub. I also custom color Lip Glosses for my customers as well. It truly makes my day when someone tells me that they love my products and that they smell amazing. I test all of the products myself before the customer gets it. I take pride in providing everyone with the best quality products. Read more>>

Thijs Hogenboom | Dancer & Actor

As an artist I think this is such an interesting question, as I feel that most artist expect you to give up EVERYTHING in order to do your art. “You gotta really want it” is an outdated statement and it needs to go. Yes of course, working hard is sometimes necessary, just like in any other profession. But a personal/social life? Some time just alone on the couch, or in a park with friends? Pretty important too. On the other hand if you ask a non-artist they’ll say; “Well you do what you love, so it’s not really work to you”. I have heard so many times, that I almost started to believe it. Of course I can work overtime with no pay, I thought, cause this is what I love to do. Read more>>

Michelle Moore Kandice Ross McCall | Luxury Event Planner

Work-life balance is essential. As a business owner, you are responsible for everything. That can leave little to no time for your other priorities. Michelle and I create balance by sharing responsibilities. We consider each other with kindness and work with one another’s strengths. In most cases, it’s not about balance but prioritization. Making sure everything gets a place on stage and nothing is neglected. You have to know when it’s time to take a break and when it’s time to grind. Having a partner makes that easy. Read more>>

Dee & Kee Of Destination Kingdom | Besties, Podcasters, & your new REAL Friend

Kee: Balance?! What balance?! LOL I’m dispelling the myth of balance and more so living my life by what is the highest priority for that season. I’m actively learning to incorporate things that are important to me to help me keep my sanity and enjoying the moment while remembering what is important.mDee: Literally laughing out loud! But forreal, it’s a work in progress. My life has changed a lot recently and I’m figuring it out day by day. This mostly consists of trying to come up with a schedule and sticking to it (a daily struggle), leaving work at work and not bringing it home, and dividing the rest of my time between the brand, my goals, my puppy, and my fiancé. Read more>>

Kelly Payton | Graphic Designer

I believe that in school, my life was work. I poured my heart and soul into getting this degree. And for that, there were times that my cup was never filled, because I was too busy filling the cups of my professors, peers, partners, and projects. The work did not always show *sleepless nights* and *bags under my eyes*, because there is a cap to productivity. I have since learned to fill my cup first, always. I have a serious morning routine that consists of early rising, reading a book before checking my phone, meditating when I remember, breathing, drinking a glass of water, and sitting in gratitude. Because of this, by the time I arrive at my desk, I am ready to take on the projects ahead. And now, my work brings me joy, fulfillment, satisfaction, eagerness to do better, purpose, constructive feedback, ways to work harder, and a love for the industry. Read more>>

Jamilah Hud-Kirk | Elementary School Principal & CEO/Founder of PCK Consulting LLC

No one ever said that multi-tasking being a mom, wife, daughter, sister and friend would be easy. When you are responsible for just yourself, it is a little easier to sacrifice the things you may want to do or experience. However, when managing all of these roles, you are responsible for creating experiences that serve others outside of yourself. Early on in my career as a school leader, I sacrificed a lot of time that should have been spent with my own children. I used to feel so guilty about not being able to attend all of my children’s school events. Prior to being a mother, I always imagined attending the field trips, volunteering at the school and making every practice. When I began leading my own school, this became increasingly more difficult. I found myself competing between my family time and my work time. Read more>>