Last week I traveled to Wisconsin to present the Career Asset Management Model (CAM) with Mike Haubrich, the financial planner who developed it. Here’s what makes it unique:

• Identifies your career as a valuable asset that needs to be as actively managed as an investment portfolio.
• Integrates the Work+Life “Fit” process into the traditional financial planning model.
• Creates a partnership between planners and career coaches which currently doesn’t exist.

The CAM model helps planners assist their clients in creatively and flexibly managing their career through critical work+life transitions as part of their overall financial strategy. The Work+Life “Fit” process is the tool within CAM that facilitates the creation, negotiation and implementation of a particular “fit” to suit a client’s current realities (See my interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 5/9/06). Continue Reading…

It’s an “Everyone” Issue, So Everyone Needs to Participate in the Conversation

I want to sit down with men and explain why the time has come for them to stop hiding in the “flexibility” closet. They are an important voice. And they are a necessary voice if we, as a culture, are going to move issue of work+life flexibility out of the “mommy” category and recognize that it’s an “everyone” issue in the 24/7 work reality of the 21st Century.
Recently I helped a client put together an event showcasing the successful use of flexibility in their organization. The goal was to explain how flexibility can be an effective work+life “fit” management tool for the individual and a strategic management tool for the managers. Continue Reading…

Frequent readers know that I consciously steer clear of the ongoing “Moms versus Work” debate because I believe:

• Work+Life is not just a “mothers” issue, it’s an “everyone” issue
• Making it a mothers-only issue actually hurts women, not helps
• It doesn’t get us any closer to a solution, but keeps us mired in the problem
• Only a privileged, minority of mothers who have the financial wherewithal to live on one salary can really engage in this debate. Most mothers need to work and are left feeling guilty that they aren’t able to make a different choice.

That said, here I am anyway. Because I believe the mommy wars/opting out/off ramps and on ramps conversation is way off track. We’ve gotten stuck in a circular, emotionally-charged, all-or-nothing debate that misses not only the countless work+life “fit” possibilities, but also overlooks some key facts that really should influence a mother’s decision whether or not to work. Continue Reading…

“I’d love to change the way work fits into my life, but I have too much of it,” is one of the top three excuses people use for not finding a better work+life “fit.” Too much work, or overwork, is part of the challenge of the 24/7 work reality. According to the 2004 study Overwork in America by Families and Work Institute (FWI), “one-third of all U.S. employees can be viewed as chronically overworked.” Ironically, being overworked is the reason these individuals need a new “fit.” But they don’t try to create a new fit because they have too much work. It’s vicious cycle. Getting past the excuses and finding a solution requires answering the question: “What is overwork?” But, there’s not a straight-forward answer. Here’s why: Continue Reading…

Work+Life “Fit” in the 4/16/06 New York Times, Career Couch Column – See my advice to people who want a life but have bosses who expect long hours in today’s 24/7 work reality….

Work+Life Research Round-up—Even More Confirmation of the New Work+Life “Fit” Reality

I am not alone in seeing a new 21st Century work+life “fit”reality. A number of recently released studies reinforce the message that strategic, mutually-beneficial work+life “fit” partnerships between individuals and employers are a key driver of future corporate competitive advantage and personal success. Continue Reading…

Meredith Viera’s move to the Today Show (NYT 4/6/06) reinforces a powerful and important message. Strategically adjusting your work+life “fit” to support your unique realities actually helps your career in the long run. It allows you to continue doing work you love, while finding time and energy for your personal life. But it requires seeing beyond the “all or nothing,” and redefining success for yourself, so that you feel good about the “fit” you are pursuing—even if other people don’t understand it. Continue Reading…

The work+life topic in the media this week is the downside of the 24/7 work reality (WSJ- 3/25/06, New York Times-3/26/06, NBC Nightly News). Most of these stories focused on longer hours, specifically people getting to work earlier. While I can see where this might be a negative development for some people, my first reaction was, “This is great!” I love getting up early. My optimal work day would start at 6:30 a.m., and end around 4:00 p.m. In fact, most mornings I’m at the gym by 5:45 a.m. But by 8:00 p.m., I’m worthless (I am notorious for falling asleep in even the noisiest places if I’m out too late).

There are a lot of early birds out there—catch us at 6:00 a.m., we’re on fire. But after 5:00 p.m., prop us up in a corner so we’re out of the way. There are an equal number of people on the other end of the spectrum—the night owls. These folks don’t begin to function before noon, and are at their most creative after 9:00 p.m. And, of course, there are endless variations in between. Continue Reading…

As people learn about my mother’s cancer diagnosis, many have shared their personal experiences of caring for an adult relative. I’ve noticed an interesting pattern, especially in the stories of mothers who also have young children. A number of them either worked full-time or part-time until an adult relative got sick. And then they quit. In other words, contrary to what we hear in the media, caring for their children wasn’t too much. It was the additional care of an adult relative that ultimately drove them out of the workforce. For example,

• Jill was a banker in New York City who had just had her second child when her mother’s cancer recurred. She felt she couldn’t get any flexibility at her firm, “all or nothing,” so she quit her job to help care for her mother until she died, and never returned to the workforce. Continue Reading…

Technical Note: “Email to a Friend” has been fixed, so please forward away!
Commentary: Yes, Things Are Getting Better… Last Tuesday I spoke to a group of professional women under 30 in New York City. I introduced the work+life “fit” strategies and then two senior executive women presented their personal stories. One was from a large media company, and the other from a large private equity firm, both had children. The final question posed to us during the Q&A was, “Have you seen things really change for the better regarding work+life?” The three of us were unanimous, “Yes, it absolutely has.” Even though we had come at this subject from three completely different perspectives, we all agreed things were improving. This got me thinking about other positive signs I’ve noticed recently.

The signs may be subtle, but the work+life conversation is starting to take a turn toward creative solutions—individually, organizationally, and culturally. Like the green shoots of the spring flowers that are just peeking out, they don’t make much of an impression individually. But, once they all start to bloom, it becomes clear that a change of season has arrived. Here are some small “shoots” of evidence that I take as encouraging signs: Continue Reading…

Redefining Success–Caregiving: What Does it Mean to be a “Good” Caregiver of an Aging Parent?
Adjusting your personal definition of success to support your “fit” is critical. In addition to money, prestige, and advancement, caregiving is one of the aspects of success that you may need to redefine. What does it mean to be a “good” caregiver–father, mother, or adult child of an aging parent—in the context of your desired work+life fit. That definition will be different for everyone.

Last week’s blog posting examined the reasons why work+life is an “everyone” issue. Both men and women experience numerous work+life fit transitions—big and small–over the course of their work and life. One of the most significant transitions comes with undertaking the care of an aging parent. With the diagnosis of my mother’s cancer three weeks ago, I joined the ranks of adult children responsible for the care of a parent facing the question, “What does it mean to be a ‘good’ eldercare giver?” Continue Reading…