Talking Stick - September/October 2012 - 21

“a fOrmer SuperVISOr uSed tO Say, ‘maxImIze the mISSIng mInuteS,’ meanIng alWayS haVe a lIttle bIt Of WOrk WIth yOu When yOu’re WalkIng arOund campuS Or WaItIng fOr Other meetIngS. Once I WaS aSked tO preSent the Same SeSSIOn tO three Separate grOupS Of tranSfer StudentS. In betWeen each SeSSIOn, I had abOut fIVe mInuteS (tOtal Of 15 mInuteS) SO I brOught SOme purchaSe OrderS WIth me tO cOmplete. thIS made me feel prOductIVe and lIke I WaSn’t WaStIng tIme. theSe 15 mInuteS OtherWISe WOuld haVe been mISSIng mInuteS had I nOt had WOrk WIth me tO dO.”
— alI martIn ScOufIeld

Brian Stroup notes three effective practices he tries to employ to achieve better balance:
• Trying to get at least 30 minutes of exercise every day. This usually can be accomplished by walking to my meetings or by going for a run during lunch time. • Not checking my email on my phone when I’m with my family. I try really hard to have family time be family time and save email checking if it needs to happen after hours either later at night or early in the morning. • Scheduling work/desk time for the most productive parts of my day. I’m more productive in the morning so when I’m scheduling meetings I try to have them be in the afternoon. I also set aside two hours every Friday to just work on tasks that haven’t been completed during the week so that they’re not hanging over me going into the weekend. Stroup also manages a blog on being a productive professional, where he posts weekly tips about making the most of your time: http:// productiveprofessional.tumblr. com.

even seasonal phenomenon. Kathy Hobgood, director of residential life at Clemson University in South Carolina, notes that “The challenge is that it’s fleeting! I usually have great work/life balance in June – not so much in that never-ending month we call ‘Augustember.’” Brian Stroup, assistant director of operations and facilities in university housing and dining services at Oregon State University in Corvallis, shares Hobgood’s sentiment, seeing the balance as an ebb and flow. “I think that there is no true balance between work and life, but rather there are high and low demand periods for each. Some times in the year demand more in work while other times of the year demand more in personal life.” There are several coping strategies that can be used in the workplace to improve the balance between professional and personal life. When asked how she makes it work, Hobgood says, “Controlling what I can (planning ahead as much as possible, limiting what I commit to, how I

construct and utilize the hours in my work day, hiring GREAT people) and letting go of what I can’t (there will be crises at work, family members will get sick, and drama will ensue).” Stroup identifies communication as the key and says he achieves a certain measure of balance “through lots of communication with my supervisor on what I need each week, and lots of support from, and partnership with, my wife.” Sometimes simply establishing the priority of one side over the other is enough to achieve a workable balance. Rob Stagni, a live-in hall coordinator at the University of Missouri in Columbia, credits making his family a priority as a key to his success. “We’ve been able to spend a good amount of time with my partner’s parents (who live nearby), which has helped us to find a sense of home outside of the residence hall. We recently got married, which was a wonderful way to completely clear our minds of work and focus on each other.” Hobgood also sees the value in bolstering her

september + october 2012

http://productiveprofessional.tumblr.com http://productiveprofessional.tumblr.com http://productiveprofessional.tumblr.com

Talking Stick - September/October 2012

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