Achieving work-life balance in financial careers seems to be a dream, at least for the juniors there. Most of the finance graduates are attracted by high-paying financial jobs like private equity jobs, investment banking, or venture capital.

Though the career is more promising, the main drawback is that they are gradually losing track of their other aspects of lives. They feel they are becoming slaves to their profession very soon and feel burned out.

Take a look at this recent working condition survey by Goldman Sachs. It's an anonymous survey of 13-first year analysts at Goldman Sachs.  

The survey says they work for 105 hours per week and professionals go to bed at 3 AM. Most of them feel they are victims of workplace abuse, and the jobs have negatively impacted relationships with family and friends. The survey report has received divided opinions in the firm and elsewhere too.

The millennial and Gen Z workers are challenging their bosses than the predecessors. Goldman Sachs chief executive said that professionals can share their concerns, and promised to enforce the existing ban on requiring junior bankers to work on Saturdays strictly. Also, asked the staff to go the extra mile for the client, even when we are reaching our limit.

Further, the COVID-19 situation has made the situation worse. As people are still working from home, the line between work and home is thinning. It is removing the contacts with colleagues or senior bankers. Many are defending their work with their concerned and protective parents rather than taking time to have late-night takeaway with colleagues.

This statistic serves just as an example. All these situations are creating stress and burnout among the professionals at private equity firms, investment banks, or any other financial services.

How to win over the stress and bring job-life balance?

Continue to read on.

To summarize, career goals, skills, and work styles of different professions differ. Accordingly, the definition of work-life balance differs. What a few people think as chaos may be a blessing or harmony for others.

So, finding a perfect work-life balance chart is difficult. The boundaries are fluid and change from one life stage to another. Working for long hours is not a problem for many, the exact problem lies in how it is managed. There are professionals who can meet deadlines, dedicate time for their kids, cook food, and spend time with life partners.

So, the point here is the necessary freedom to manage the schedules. These days men prefer to take an egalitarian approach to organize family life, while women are demanding flexibility and paid maternity leave.

The secret is not to look for perfect life balance, for there is no one as such. Instead, you should ask yourself these questions:

• What is important to me?
• Who is important to me?
• How to create a situation where I can excel at my job and life too?

If the answers are ‘yes’ then you are on the happy path. On the contrary, if you get hollow answers, then you should work on changing your routine. From the organization side, you will not get any incentives to empower workers to live healthy lives.

It is our cup of tea to do the work that lets us live our lives to the fullest.

According to McNeff, the author of The Work-life Balance Myth: Rethinking Your Optimal Balance for Success, there are seven key components - professional life, family life, physical life, emotional life, intellectual life, and spiritual life – that make our life.

One should achieve a sense of equilibrium rather than following the roller coaster of circumstances and events that occur in personal or business life. Research suggests that most of the employees are consuming about 97% of their time on professional and family life while spending only minutes per week in the other components.

If you can spend some time on other components also, your life may change. For instance, you can:

• run or walk or exercise (physical)
• read books or listen to music (emotional)
• do anything for personal happiness (personal)
• attend spiritual discourses (spiritual)
• learn new things (intellectual)

If you can devote some time to these components, then only you can have a perfect and balanced professional and family life.

As we are working remotely these days, we should learn to switch from the office and go to the kitchen. Due to social restrictions posed by the pandemic, you may not be able to visit the gym or go on a vacation, you can definitely spend time on other components.

We find lots of data indicating stress in private equity jobs, marketing jobs, and many more. the solution lies in not stopping what you are doing, but add something new to it. Find some time to add a new thing to your life that is totally under your control.

See the difference it brings to your professional and personal life.

Your stress has disappeared!

You are bound to lead a stress-free and balanced life despite your working hours.

Share your thoughts with us.