The concept of work-life balance implies that work is bad and life is good; it suggests that work and life are two dichotomous entities that need to be strictly separated and kept at an equilibrium; for some, it even insinuates that less work equals more happiness.
Of course, experts have tried to invent new terms to describe the modern reality of our entangled lives: work-life integration, work-life fit, work-life synergy… But these are semantics, playing with words to hide the basic flaw of considering an outdated vision of work as fundamental to a happy life. So, what’s the alternative?
You may think what you want of Jeff Bezos, but he clearly articulates one of the issues with work-life balance: “That’s a debilitating phrase because it implies there’s a strict trade-off. And the reality is, if I am happy at home, I come into the office with tremendous energy. And if I am happy at work, I come home with tremendous energy. It actually is a circle; it’s not a balance.”
https://nesslabs.com/work-life-balance-problem?utm_term=Mon+Nov+20+2023
unknownx500
/Passle/60211dc9e5416a0c14bc63d4/SearchServiceImages/2025-12-03-19-31-44-490-69309020a71bd983b528ca6c.jpg)
