Work-Life Balance: Ignore at Your Peril

Tuesday June 23, 2009

Today’s new article recognizes the most significant component of our June celebration of Professional Wellness Month: work-life balance. This topic has consumed my writing for several weeks because it is a major recruiting and retention factor for younger employees.

No longer willing to dedicate their lives to work, as many perceive their parents did, professional wellness has taken on a new meaning that encompasses time for all of life’s activities for these, especially Gen Y or millennial employees. Products of structured lives, every minute of which was filled with scheduled activities, these employees will only thrive when work balances life.

Employers will ignore this at their peril. In one major computer company, 55% of employees telecommute from home offices. Increasing numbers of employers allow flexible work schedules. With the right policies and expectations in place, these work relationships are successful. They promote success for employers and employees. I’ll continue to explore these options with you. Their importance is increasing and creates a tidal wave of new expectations for employers.

_{Image Copyright John Howard / Getty Images}

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