Agree, it is the culture. It does not help when they expect you to be most productive and the best all the time! But i think if we try to make an effort, we can get there some how in time to come. Change begins when we take the 1st step. Go for it.titank wrote:When can we like Ang Moh country where work 35 hours per week?
In Asia, it is really stress to work!
Work Life Balance
- Quintessential Mum
- BlueBelt
- Posts: 341
- Joined: Tue Oct 12,
- Quintessential Mum
- BlueBelt
- Posts: 341
- Joined: Tue Oct 12,
- Quintessential Mum
- BlueBelt
- Posts: 341
- Joined: Tue Oct 12,
Work life balance is completely up to the individual to manage for himself, in my view.
35 hour work week? Do our productivity levels support anything close to that? Even France is rolling it back, and make no mistake, my colleagues in western climes are working as long and as hard as Singaporeans, if not harder.
35 hour work week? Do our productivity levels support anything close to that? Even France is rolling it back, and make no mistake, my colleagues in western climes are working as long and as hard as Singaporeans, if not harder.
Agree it is up to each individual. Some decide to work part-time, much less than 35 hour/week. Some work hard and then retire young, have more time to travel the world. Some love to work and don't mind working long hours. Can also decide to migrate to western countries and work only 35 hour work week, when so many of them move to work in Asia.3Boys wrote:Work life balance is completely up to the individual to manage for himself, in my view.
35 hour work week? Do our productivity levels support anything close to that? Even France is rolling it back, and make no mistake, my colleagues in western climes are working as long and as hard as Singaporeans, if not harder.
I think it's up to individual. Speaking with some mummy friends, everyone with a primary school going kids will yearn for work life balance.
So that might mean, you probably got to be contented with where your career stands currently eg. not chasing that promotion and being at ease with yourself when you choose to give up a role that pays but demands alot more time. Being comfortable telling your boss that you value work life balance and it doesn't matter even if you don't get promoted or the younger people are just moving ahead of you on the corporate ladder that one day they are potentially your boss?
So I agree it voice down to individual choice.
On the other hand, to support that we need a company structure that enables work life balance. Eg. allowing work from home, providing broadband connections, etc...
Another key factor is we need supportive bosses who subscribe to the same value of work life balance. I feel that this is more prevalent in the US. My US boss would encourage me to take vacation to be with family. He too does the same thing several time a year. Perhaps someone with a family can understand the need for work life balance better??? When you see your boss setting time for his family, you probably feel that it's the right thing for you to do so too.
The chances are if you meet a workaholic boss, you also feel "paiseh" when he works so hard and you don't???? You leave the office at 5.30pm while he leaves at 10pm consistently??? So these are some of the contributing factors for failure of work life balance.
I also encounter people who are not used to the work from home concept to think that if someone is working from home, they must be skivving. This is not true. Some people are more productive at home because they don't do extended lunch breaks, they don't have people disturbing them when they are working (provided no kids around you/ you lay ground rules with them) and the time saved on travelling to and from office can be used for working.
Just sharing my views. I think I am very lucky as I happen to meet a company and my bosses who understand my need to balance my work and my family. They are fully supportive and so long as I am able to perform, no one will doubt my ability. It's not the hours spent in the office but the results. On the other hand, I do work at night when kids are doing their school work. We are just doing our own work in the same room but at least our presence are felt. So this flexibilty helps.
So that might mean, you probably got to be contented with where your career stands currently eg. not chasing that promotion and being at ease with yourself when you choose to give up a role that pays but demands alot more time. Being comfortable telling your boss that you value work life balance and it doesn't matter even if you don't get promoted or the younger people are just moving ahead of you on the corporate ladder that one day they are potentially your boss?
So I agree it voice down to individual choice.
On the other hand, to support that we need a company structure that enables work life balance. Eg. allowing work from home, providing broadband connections, etc...
Another key factor is we need supportive bosses who subscribe to the same value of work life balance. I feel that this is more prevalent in the US. My US boss would encourage me to take vacation to be with family. He too does the same thing several time a year. Perhaps someone with a family can understand the need for work life balance better??? When you see your boss setting time for his family, you probably feel that it's the right thing for you to do so too.
The chances are if you meet a workaholic boss, you also feel "paiseh" when he works so hard and you don't???? You leave the office at 5.30pm while he leaves at 10pm consistently??? So these are some of the contributing factors for failure of work life balance.
I also encounter people who are not used to the work from home concept to think that if someone is working from home, they must be skivving. This is not true. Some people are more productive at home because they don't do extended lunch breaks, they don't have people disturbing them when they are working (provided no kids around you/ you lay ground rules with them) and the time saved on travelling to and from office can be used for working.
Just sharing my views. I think I am very lucky as I happen to meet a company and my bosses who understand my need to balance my work and my family. They are fully supportive and so long as I am able to perform, no one will doubt my ability. It's not the hours spent in the office but the results. On the other hand, I do work at night when kids are doing their school work. We are just doing our own work in the same room but at least our presence are felt. So this flexibilty helps.
I have worked at both local company and MNCs....and very much agree that it's the immediate bosses and their mindset that sets the difference. Sad to say that some companies do not practise what they preach. It's still hard to find enlightening bosses...
For example, my last company (MNC) does have work from home provision, but there is always the qualification that one's direct supervisor at specific business unit sets the decision. Thus even though on a company-wide basis there is work from home policy, but my direct boss, subscribing to a very narrow mindset, does not allow this among our business unit. However, the same business unit in Europe and Australia does have people working from home/flexi timing etc due to different people at the helm.
Some of the bosses, being of a specific gender, have their other half typically being homemakers. Thus they may not empathise with working mother's conflicting demands. To them, they just need to bring home the bacon while their COO will take care of all domestic matters.
I have reached the stage whereby I have turned a blind eye to all the "CCAs" at work...It's a conscious decision that involves trade-offs, e.g. facetime & networking with bosses, promotion prospect etc...but I know where my priority lies & I stand by my decision !!
For example, my last company (MNC) does have work from home provision, but there is always the qualification that one's direct supervisor at specific business unit sets the decision. Thus even though on a company-wide basis there is work from home policy, but my direct boss, subscribing to a very narrow mindset, does not allow this among our business unit. However, the same business unit in Europe and Australia does have people working from home/flexi timing etc due to different people at the helm.
Some of the bosses, being of a specific gender, have their other half typically being homemakers. Thus they may not empathise with working mother's conflicting demands. To them, they just need to bring home the bacon while their COO will take care of all domestic matters.
I have reached the stage whereby I have turned a blind eye to all the "CCAs" at work...It's a conscious decision that involves trade-offs, e.g. facetime & networking with bosses, promotion prospect etc...but I know where my priority lies & I stand by my decision !!
Interesting you mentioned NLP. Read somewhere that we tend to tilt our heads to the right when lying & to the left when thinking. So I'm training myself to tilt leftwards when I'm less than 100% honest, keke.Quintessential Mum wrote:Ha ha do you think that they are using NLP to get into our minds?markfch wrote:When the tagline of 'cheaper, better, faster' is repeated all over the media, I think the concept of work balance has to take a back seat.
Produce our own SG born and bred noble prize winner and invention...titank wrote:When can we like Ang Moh country where work 35 hours per week?
In Asia, it is really stress to work!
and we will be there ........ 8)....sell to the world and keep
producing innovations ....that why ang moh can do it
We still a long long way if we only at churning out "A" scholar
and not creative thinking daring youth ??? 8)
I work in an ang moh company both local and oversea before and also work in a Asian company....u think which can give me a work life balance..
the answer is obvious.....so the Asian system is still very young ...
given time we can be there in a different way ....is for every Asian to
work together towards it