One Apple A Day #931 - bring everything with you
More and more, when I'm asked if what I do is personal or professional development, or when I hear someone talking about life-work balance, I find my self puzzled.
How come we think about work as something that happens outside our life? Is it really possible to separate who I am as a person from my profession?
It looks like, for many, there is a clear line dividing personal from professional life. On one side, there is me. On the other side, there is the professional. Sure, it's still me but not exactly me.
Yesterday, my dear friend Luca told me that it can be a defensive mechanism. If the person who goes to work is not me, not entirely at least, I can cope with the fact that I may do things the "real me" wouldn't do. For example, I can be more willing to compromise on some values.
Hey, it's work in the end. You need to compromise on something if you want to work.
But then, when I am out of there, I am still me.
How long, however, can we keep this barrier?
I believe you are at the peak of your creativity when you are whole. When you can bring all of yourself in what you do. That's where work becomes craft or art.
Sure, our behaviours are a function of our identity in the environment. So, it's natural to behave differently in different environments.
But, how much of YOU are you leaving out of your work?