Work Life Balance – How to Find It
With three kids’ college educations on the horizon, my husband and I decided that unless we wanted to retire and live in a shack, I should look at working full-time. My twelve years working professionally part-time fortunately had allowed me to spend time with my children when they were young up to this point.
Making this change was big for me. My children no longer needed the day-to-day care, but I still wanted the flexibility to be there when they get off the bus and be the loudest mom cheering for them at a soccer game. If only I had read this blog before I started the interviewing process. I struggled with how to talk to a potential employer about my need for flexibility and a good work life balance. I wanted to ask early on in the interview process about the culture of the company and the balance they offered the employees.
• Do they offer work from home options?
• Vacation Time – how much did they offer to new employees and were they willing to negotiate that time.
• Schedule flexibility – was the work day 8-5 or could I work some days 7-3 and occasionally work on the evenings and weekends?
I had a strong work ethic and did not want to give the impression that I was lazy or greedy but the bottom line was, if they could not be flexible, I did not want to take the job.
If you or someone you know is in a similar position that I was, direct them to read this blog. I would love to say when I interviewed with Avanceon that I was stealthy when asking my questions. Unfortunately, that was not the case. I stumbled over the questions and took wimp junction several times. This blog would have helped put me at ease and give the confidence to ask the questions. Instead, I got lucky, during my interview I was told that as long as you do a good job, it does not matter where you do it. I knew I had found the right company for me.
It has been over five years since I made the switch and I can honestly say I am looking forward to many more. With my oldest daughter finishing her second year of college and two more yet to go, I am very fortunate that I found the perfect fit in a company that values both work and family. I can only hope you can find that in the future as well.