Are You Working Too Hard?

It’s all about balance

While on vacation several weeks ago in the tiny port town of Le Brusc in southern France, a trusted friend said to me, “I think you work too hard.” The irony of the situation was not lost on me. My partner and I usually take at least two annual several week breaks, a time to get away from our every day for renewal and creative dreaming. Our two favorite spots, in Valencia, Spain and Le Brusc, France, are far enough away from our residence in northern Indiana to give us a more objective perspective on our lives. So here we were, enjoying a more flexible schedule, sleeping in, definitely not working, something we do regularly and consciously to counteract our country’s obsession with work, only to hear those words.

I went to bed that night with my friend’s phrase pounding in my ears. “Do I really work too hard?,” I asked myself. “Maybe this is a wake-up call to change. Maybe I am doing too much.”  I started second guessing myself, something I don’t usually do. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep well that night. But it got me thinking about work and reconsidering what I do. 

For those of us who are creative and are less bound to a work schedule, in some sense our life is our work. It’s less of a career and more of a vocation. Right now my work energy is focused on running a cheese shop, writing, baking and block printing. In the midst of that, I’m also gardening. As I live out each day, my creative mind is always at work. And I’m using it not only for my paid work but also for how I live.

What I think it comes down to is how I live out my work. Am I driven by outside forces or by my own gut? Am I doing one at the expense of another? What brings me the most happiness? The key that I’ve found, and which I explained to my friend, is learning to balance the work that I love within the whole of my life, giving myself space to breathe within the more intense moments of working, focusing on sustainable living rather than financial gain.

That’s why every morning, I have a leisurely breakfast when I take the time to catch up on the news, do a crossword puzzle, and share thoughts with my partner. Every noon, I enjoy a good hour for eating and reading. And every early evening, I take a walk at OxBow County Park, just far enough away from my residence that I make a good break with “work.” There’s also daily yoga and time off for a cup of coffee at the local coffee shop.

Today, the redbud trees all over town broke out of their winter browns, flaunting bright pink blossoms against the emerging spring green. To me, they announce that a new season is in progress which turns my creative mind toward new possibilities, fresh ideas and a whole summer ahead to work them out. They also radiate the joy and exuberance that I hope to have as I work and they intimate the happiness I find when my work, my life, find that perfect balance. Time to get back to work!