The word “balance” is something we’ve heard since we were little. We listened to our parents talk about “balance” when they were discussing work and what we might do on the weekends. We saw politicians and celebrities on the covers of magazines talk about the importance of “balance” when it comes to finding happiness and sustaining relationships.
But only now, entering my mid-20s, am I starting to understand what this term “balance” might mean.
Watching friends climb the corporate ladder, and seeing how their careers take shape and form a life of their own, is interesting. (It can also be envy-inducing.) As these jobs are taking over, I find time is becoming more precious. It’s running faster. We start to hear that word “balance” quietly muttered once again.
Then I watch the women at work who have families as well as careers. I listen to them talk about finding school socks and trying to get people in the car on time and trying to remember the ham in the fridge for the lunch sandwiches all before getting to work for a 9am meeting. For these women, keeping up seems more like a mouse on a wheel. The word “balance” has never been so important.
For these women, as with all of us, one of the key elements in finding this balance is happiness at work.
Now, the types of jobs that make women happiest have been revealed.
A survey by Fairygodboss – a website that lists job and employer reviews “for women, by women” – looked to how women rate their work in terms of “happiness”. Here’s what was found.
