THE right balance between work and life differs for everyone, and no matter the choice, something will have to give, said panellists on Thursday (Dec 5), at a discussion on finding the right career.
The event was hosted by thrive, the young audience initiative of The Business Times.
Dione Song, the boss of home-grown fashion retailer Love, Bonito, said that work-life balance was a dated concept, and that people should work at building work-life integration, despite the movement prioritising a separation between the two.
“Work should really be a place… where you can bring your true self,” added the 36-year-old chief executive. “If you feel like you have to be someone else, then it’s not the organisation for you.”
About 100 attendees turned up at the National Library for the sold-out event to hear panellists speak about their career journeys and how to find meaning at work. The chat was followed by a networking session, where attendees mingled with their peers and the panellists over drinks and finger food.
On the panel, Song was joined by lawyer, poet and playwright Amanda Chong, and organisational psychologist Khairul Mohd Khair.
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Song said that it was “archaic” to view work and life as binaries that needed to be balanced, addressing the online flak she received for speaking about work-life integration in past media interviews.
People make lifelong friendships in the workplace that cross between their work and personal lives, she noted.
Her own approach is to keep meetings in the office casual; she is also transparent with her employees so that they, too, can feel comfortable about not having to put up a front.
What can you sacrifice?
Vivien Shiao, BT’s young audience editor and moderator at the panel discussion, asked the panellists if they thought achieving true work-life balance was possible.
Khairul, who heads the people and organisational development department at the non-profit Stroke Support Station, said debates about work-life balance get messy because people want everything in their lives.
The reality is that sacrifices have to be made and people must know what their priorities are, he added.
“Am I going to work 14 hours a day because I’m passionate about my role? Or am I going to say I’m going to give eight hours of my life because I want the rest of my life for things I enjoy doing with people whom I love?”
But he pointed out that those who draw a clear line about when the work day ends should then not complain if others who worked harder get promoted before them following performance appraisals.
Admitting her own lack of work-life balance, Chong said she consistently sleeps at between 3 and 4 am every night to maintain her two careers – as a director and deputy senior state counsel at the Attorney-General’s Chambers by day, and as an artist by night.
“I’m still trying to find that balance for myself,” the 35-year-old said. “But it’s the balance that I can live with. And you have to be comfortable with that trade-off and not compare yourself with others.”
Finding your calling
Chong advised those in the audience not to make work their identity and put too much pressure on their job performance as a source of fulfilment, to the point that something bad at work affects their sense of self.
Love, Bonito’s Song said that there is no harm in calling it quits and finding a new career or going back to an old job.
She added that the start of her career spanned different areas of finance, before she took a pay cut to join the startup industry when she realised finance was not for her.
“Just try being open to opportunities and gradually eliminate the things that you don’t like,” she noted.
Khairul said that it is very difficult for people in today’s world to find jobs that give them meaning – and those who do are very lucky.
What he has only begun to realise in his work in human resources is that the younger generation does not look to work to find meaning; instead, work is a means of funding the other areas in their lives that give them that purpose.
“And that’s fine,” he said, adding that the challenge for companies is how they can design policies that allow employees to give the best eight hours, so they can have the rest of their time doing other things that they enjoy.
Sometimes, people just need time in a job before they start to appreciate the work they do, he said.
“And then eventually you grow into that role, and it becomes your calling.”
To keep up to date on future events on navigating money, career and life as young adults, subscribe to thrive’s free newsletter or follow thrive on TikTok and Instagram. thrive is the young audience initiative of The Business Times, and aims to help young adults navigate money, career and life.
