Work Life Balance and Your Career - Be a Power Hitter not a Singles Hitter

Everyone has to tip the scales of work-life balance away from their family on occasion. But for career success and a healthy life you should control when that balance is tipped. Pick your spots and your career might even advance faster than the company work horse.

I am the first person who will preach work-life balance to you. Family comes first in my life and I would never have it any other way. Or to use the old adage - nobody ever laid on their death bed and said “I wish I had worked more.”

True enough, but many people have regrets about opportunities lost, paths not taken, careers not explored. Don’t forget that there is work in work-life balance. Without it you cannot live in every sense of the word. You cannot provide the life for your family that you want. You cannot share the things that you want with them. You cannot be the person that you want to be who feels satisfied with their personal growth and accomplishments.

So, how do you keep them in balance? That is not for me to answer - it is a personal thing without doubt. I will give you one “hack” though that will help tip the balance in the direction of life - helping you achieve in your career without spending your life at work.

Assuming that you are a strong worker who can handle the day to day pressures of your job, if you want to advance your career you need to show that you can handle more, or that you can handle greater challenges. There is more than one way to be seen as a key member of the team.

“…like the power hitter, every once in a while you have to step up to the plate and hit it out of the park. Preferably when it counts most.”

Some baseball players make careers out of being incredibly dependable. They hit .270 year in and year out with lots of singles and get on base by any means possible. They make all the routine plays in the field and very few errors. Nothing spectacular hitting or fielding, but they are always there - they might be called “workhorses.” It takes a long time, but they are eventually seen as indispensable.

Are you planning on being a workhorse to build your career? Are you in the office first and out last? Do you take on every task you possibly can without ever suggesting your plate might be full? Are you working so hard that you can’t possibly do your best on everything, but find yourself getting lots of walks and singles?

This works for sure. You will be noticed and as the dependable person you will be given more and more responsibility. It takes time. You aren’t seen as a star, but your stock rises. You invest heavily in your career and chances are you pay for it in your personal life feeling the pressure and living your job.

I’d like to suggest becoming a home run hitter. They’re the kind of player who can be forgiven the occasional fielding error or strikeout because their impact on the team is so great with one swing of the bat. Now, please don’t take this too literally. I’m not suggesting that you create a reputation as a person that will screw up on occasion but is quite valuable - far from it. I would equate the errors and strikeouts more with moderation in what you take on. Develop the ability to say no - that’s a whole different skill and blog post. You should do every bit of the work that is reasonable to expect of an effective employee - but don’t try to be the workhorse doing the jobs of two or three people.

Then, like the power hitter, every once in a while you have to step up to the plate and hit it out of the park. Preferably when it counts most - in the late innings with men on base - or in business sense, on a key project that a superior has given you responsibility for. You can even choose the right time to step up and say “pick me”, give me the chance now to help. That’s the time you sacrifice. You stay late or all night. You do everything it takes to accomplish the task beyond anyone’s expectations.

Every project counts you say? They are all key? You can look at it that way, but surely a few times a year a special situation arises where you are going after the dream account, or your bosses boss needs your help, or the results of your project will be especially public. Everyone must have the chance to pick their spots and really go for it. When that time arises you need to tip the balance hard in the work direction and be sure that you don’t miss. Pull out every trick you have, every favor available and every minute of your time to deliver perfection.

The power hitter will be noticed and given the big opportunity. The singles hitter in the office won’t even be able to step up to the plate because they are already working way beyond capacity. Even if they go for it on the special project, they will drop a few balls elsewhere. But you will be seen as a clutch performer who hits a home run with two out in the bottom of the ninth. And guess who gets the big contract?

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