What are your priorities this year?

Last week I was on a call at work where we were asked using a Teams poll what our priorities were going to be for the year ahead. The question popped up on screen and you had to enter a word or a few words that described what your priorities were going to be.

I’m not sure why but it struck a nerve with me. Although I realise this was just a way to understand if it was clear what everyone’s priorities should be.

There were a lot of people answering with precisely what they want to focus on from a professional point of view. However, I answered the question with the words “better work-life balance”.

Probably not exactly what they were looking for but I think we need to remember to prioritise ourselves first. I often feel that the corporate world likes to use lip service with the aim of making people feel like they work in a company that puts their staff first. Slogans such as “we offer a flexible working policy”.

What does this even mean? Well, what they are trying to promote is a policy where you can work flexibly and, as long as you get the work done, you can work the times of the day that suit you (to a certain extent).

This is great but, in practice when your workload is through the roof and you struggle to make deadlines due to the intensity, unfortunately this fails.

I don’t have kids but I really can’t get my head around how people with kids can operate in a high pressure / demanding profession. The strain these professions put on relationships and mental health is terrible. People become trapped in their profession, it becomes their identity, it’s all they know. The peer pressure from their work colleagues / clients to ensure delivery no matter what. All at the same time as trying to live their own life outside of work and the pressure that comes with that.

Sometimes I wonder, would my life have been better if I did not choose the demanding / high pressure profession that I have? Should I have gone for something less stressful where I could leave my work worries at work?

Since starting my career, I found it difficult to switch off from work. I stress over the projects I am working on. Constantly going over things in my head trying to work out the next move to ensure best delivery. I also spend time outside of work with the Mrs going for walks, going on holidays, going out for dinner, etc. and during these times I often feel as if I have no headspace to make meaningful conversation. It becomes all consuming. This isn’t fair on anyone - particularly for her. She often notices it and gives me a hard time which is fair enough but I often can’t really control it.

At least if I had a less stressful job, my mind may be more free to be able to enjoy the life part of the work-life balance a little bit more. I just imagine it being more care free - allowing me to feel more light on my feet.

But would this really be the case?

Unfortunately in life there is a trade off. Well from my point of view I see it as a trade off between having more stress at work but less money stresses at home. I feel that if I chose the easy route from the start, I would likely have more money stresses throughout my life. I chose the harder / more demanding / stressful route in the aim of creating a better future for me and my (prospective) family. At the end of the day, put simply, I am trading a lot of this pain / time for money that I hope will improve my life.

Although I should always remember these motives. At the end of the day, we all work to live and not live to work. I have noticed as I grow older that there are a lot of people who become lost. They lose their identity to their work and become stuck. They lose all purpose to live outside of their work environment as it has been all consuming for too long.

This is a significant motivator for me for the financial independence movement. I may have a great career and have accomplished a lot but what does this all mean if I can’t live a little?

For me, the shorter my highly demanding / stressful career is, the better. What comes next, who knows but it keeps my focus sharp on the prize. Maybe financial independence has become all consuming also - which isn’t healthy either but then again it is good to have a focus outside of work too.

Really there is no point in enduring all of this stress and the impact it has on your personal life if you are going to squander all of the fruits you bare from it. If you have nothing to show after years of working, what is the point?

I recently found out someone I know (who has a really nice house, a good job, kids, dresses well and has a fancy car) is in significant debt because they are trying to “keep up with the Joneses”. I mean, how ridiculous is that? What is the purpose? They are both stressed out at work and in life with no plan for the future. Unfortunately for them, if nothing changes, they will end up working a lot longer than anticipated and may lose themself along the way.

So what is the lesson here?

For me, it’s making the most of the opportunities you have and putting yourself first. At the end of the day, you work in your job / career for your benefit first and foremost. You need to make it work for you. I see the money I bring in as part of my salary package the same as income from a business and look to apply that capital in the most optimal way possible - with the end goal in mind.

The end goal being something my Dad always told me as a young boy - find out a way to make more money by working less. It will take time but I think I have found a potential path.