According to Max Bridger, he leads a charmed life. A drilling foreman for a
big oil company, Max works 28 days on a rig in Egypt and then flies home to
Louisiana for 28 days. “This on-and-off schedule drives some guys crazy,” Max
says, “but it suits me. While I’m on the rig, I’m busy and focused. When I fly
home, I leave work a world away. My wife loves that I’m at her disposal for
almost a month at a time. And it’s great to have the golf course or fishing hole
to myself on weekday afternoons.”
While as many as 40% of the workers we studied say that balance is their
primary career priority, few of them take regular midweek fishing trips. We
found that most people try to balance by juggling—simultaneously pursuing all of
the activities that make a life. They cope by running faster, working harder,
and cramming more into their lives. This makes for a rich and multifaceted
existence, but it’s also exhausting—often leading to burnout, poor health,
guilt, and frustration.
Our research identified people who found more sustainable ways of coping. Max
uses one of those approaches, which we call “alternating.” Alternaters trade
intense periods of work with breaks to recharge. Within some professions, such
as oil drilling, tax accounting, or teaching, alternating is built in. Yet we
also found people who occasionally back off from work even if they don’t have
automatic breaks. A few manage their finances carefully and quit working
altogether every few years. Others use their experience and credibility to buy
free time. Bob Harper, a Cleveland-based insurance executive, negotiated a
four-day workweek after the wake-up call of a heart attack. “I used to be
available 24/7,” he says, “but now my weekends are sacred. I’m fully present
Monday through Thursday, but I don’t even think about work during my three days
off.” Others alternate by varying the intensity of projects or assignments at
work. “I can still be a high performer even if I sometimes take on a project
that’s relatively easy,” says Mark Hammond, an Indianapolis-based human
resources manager.
Most of the alternaters we interviewed love their work. Many of them
alternate because they become engrossed in their jobs. But they love a lot of
other things, too, and don’t want a steady diet of long-term work. Wayne Chen
started a small, successful software business, then sold it to a Fortune 500
company. Not long after the new management took over, Wayne had an epiphany. “My
siblings were married and had kids who I didn’t know, and most of them lived in
the same city. I hadn’t gone on a date for five years. The word “play” had
disappeared from my vocabulary.” He quit his job and started having a life. “I
had a million frequent-flier miles,” he laughs. “I could go almost anywhere in
the world for free.” While his social life improved, Wayne stayed current on
technology developments. He enjoyed doing it just for fun. Eventually, he signed
on as chief technology officer for an Internet startup. “I’ll do this as long as
it’s fun,” he says, “then maybe take another break.”
The money Wayne got from selling his business lets him decide whether he’ll
work or not. By staying up-to-date professionally, he’ll always be in a position
to earn more money. That combination—high earning capability and professional
credibility—were common to the successful alternaters we met. They were also
economically prudent. “I drive a seven-year-old Honda and live in a two-bedroom
condo in a nice, but definitely not luxurious, part of town,” says Wayne. “I’d
rather have freedom than a house full of luxury items.”
Alternating has the obvious downside of creating financial peaks and valleys.
It can also create emotional ups and downs. “It’s tough for my wife and family
when I’m gone for a month at a time,” says Max, the oil driller. “I’ve missed my
share of birthdays and anniversaries.” Plus, Max’s months on the rig aren’t the
only source of stress. “After doing everything on their own, they have to
automatically shift gears when I’m around for a month.”
Some alternaters take a team approach, where partners switch off as primary
breadwinner. Bridget Jackson, a state supreme court justice, and her husband,
Byron, a pediatrician, want both professional and family success. Bridget
established her reputation while Byron finished his schooling and training.
Byron started his practice at about the time their children were born, so
Bridget cut back to part time while Byron dove into work. Once Byron’s practice
was established, Bridget went back to full-time work. Although their children
were in school and didn’t need full-time parenting, Byron stopped accepting new
patients to be more available to the kids. Once Bridget was appointed to a
judgeship and their children were in high school, Byron ramped up his practice
and spent more time on researching and writing.
Alternating isn’t for everyone. It works best for people who like intensity,
yet have multiple priorities. High earning potential coupled with careful money
management make it much easier. Plus, it works better in some professions than
in others. But even if alternating isn’t a strategy you can fully embrace, there
are easy ways to alternate on a small scale, including using all of your
vacation time each year in ways that will recharge you, keeping weekends and
holidays sacred, looking for less intense assignments at work from time to time,
and negotiating for free time or “comp time” at work.
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