How many hours do you work every day? How many hours do you spend with family? How do you manage health? Any productivity tricks you wish to share?
Ask HN: Work-life balance?
1–10 of 112 posts
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#2"If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable."
- Your Favorite President
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#3Non-US. I work exactly 8 hours. Unless there is an emergency. I never want to lose family time so the days I need to go to the gym I skip lunch (I eat something while working) and use the extra hour after work to go to the gym.
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#4Non-US. I work exactly 8 hours. Unless there is an emergency. I never want to lose family time so the days I need to go to the gym I skip lunch (I eat something while working) and use the extra hour after work to go to the gym.
Which country ? In Asia-pacific region this is a dream! (to work exactly 8 hours) Likely Europe ?
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#5Non-US. I work exactly 8 hours. Unless there is an emergency. I never want to lose family time so the days I need to go to the gym I skip lunch (I eat something while working) and use the extra hour after work to go to the gym.
Which country ? In Asia-pacific region this is a dream! (to work exactly 8 hours) Likely Europe ?
Yes Europe, I think it's pretty common around here not to overwork. I've had 3 jobs and all were similar. Do your work, no one checks your hours as long as you are not obviously underworking and on occasions you will have to stay a couple hours more just to make sure the servers don't die.
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#6Married but no kids (yet). We are both urban professionals. I work 10-7, and more if needed after dinner at home. She works 8-7 but cannot do her job from home. I workout 2x during the week and 1x during the weekend.
My trick is to never work weekends. I work as hard as possible during the week then try not to work at all on the weekends. The key is to get into a routine where you don't burn out. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Find what works for you for the longterm. People in their early 20's who think they can keep 80 hour weeks up forever are naive (I used to be that way). Make time to socialize and maintain friendships.
Mental and physical health are essential. Eat healthy, exercise, don't push yourself too hard for too long.
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#7I work a bit more than 9 hours a day, but am lucky to have disconnected working hours. I catch up on movies and reading while doing business development meetings (and making sure that I don't write private information in places it could be compromised), come home early, spend time with family and then do a few hours of focus time after dinner when the kids are asleep.
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#8I work a bit more than 9 hours a day, but am lucky to have disconnected working hours. I catch up on movies and reading while doing business development meetings (and making sure that I don't write private information in places it could be compromised), come home early, spend time with family and then do a few hours of focus time after dinner when the kids are asleep.
While I travel for BD meetings * not during them :-)
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#9Earlier quoted context omitted.
Which country ? In Asia-pacific region this is a dream! (to work exactly 8 hours) Likely Europe ?
Yes Europe, I think it's pretty common around here not to overwork. I've had 3 jobs and all were similar. Do your work, no one checks your hours as long as you are not obviously underworking and on occasions you will have to stay a couple hours more just to make sure the servers don't die.
In Europe, this is very common to overwork. I am french and everybody that did not stay after 5pm was considered as "underperforming" and blamed for it. In the USA (at least after working in 3 companies in different states), if you stay after 5pm, it means you might not be able to complete your job in the allocated time and therefore, might be "underperforming". This is a simplification but this is the overall sentiment I have from both sides of the Atlantic.
Re: Ask HN: Work-life balance?
#10Europe, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 25 days of paid vacation plus bank holidays.