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Quest for a balance between work and free time
Posted: 2007-10-31 18:38:03, Categories: General, Work, 627 words (permalink)
I have a job again. My employer is CSC, the same where I worked before my
year on the road. The contents of my work is also similar to what it
used to be. However, there is one important difference: my contract is
for 80 hours per month. In other words, roughly half the hours, half
the pay compared to full-time employment.
Work is divided unevenly in the society. Some people are frustrated about being unemployed and unable to find a job, while some others are spending virtually all their time working, stressed, living on the verge of burnout. The number of working hours per week tends to increase the higher one climbs up on the hierarchy ladder, or in some cases reaches a peak on the middle management level. It has long been preached that new technology, development and prosperity would make life easier and reduce the amount of work, but it doesn't seem to generally happen that way.
If work is really a passion and one truly wants to focus on it, working long hours is fine. But how often is that really the case? I've had the privilege to have jobs I've found interesting and even enjoyable, but I couldn't really call them passions or at least not something I'd want to invest all my time on. I have many parallel interests and find it difficult to stay fully focused on any single topic for a long time. I need a balance between different activities in order to continue liking each of them.
The proper balance varies between individuals, and less work than before but still some work sounded just right for me now. Committing to 80 hours per month I will be able to alternate flexibly between days in the office and days out, in average working about 2.5 days per week. Sometimes I'll probably work for a full week and then have a full week off. I will have more time for my Chinese language studies and volunteering in clubs and societies. I have a few projects in mind in that area, but I'm not setting any exact goals. If it happens that I just end up spending more time cycling, traveling, watching movies, surfing the net, going to parties and enjoying life, let it be so.
My main reason for going back to CSC were the people. Being surrounded by intelligent colleagues I can learn things not only related to work but about the world at large. The project I'm working on, large scale data storage in a grid environment using the dCache software, is interesting but I would have been able to find other good ones too. I considered for example working as a freelance journalist like I did during my student years, learning interesting topics and then writing articles about them. In the end, CSC won because I had got on well there before and they were willing to hire me even after listening to my slightly unusual requests.
I do realize that this is not the way to go towards a shining career and promotions to higher positions. However, that doesn't feel like the most important thing now. I'm currently not willing to commit into anything for a very long time, and wanted to be open about that: I signed up only until the end of April 2008. I need to be good in what I do and at the same time be happy about the job — the contract will be extended only if both parties want it.
It'll be interesting to observe for the next six months how I'll feel about this new arrangement and what kind of comments I'll hear from others around me. At least based on the first three weeks I think I've made the right choice again.
4 comments
Kiitoksia kehuista. Ystävät ovat tärkeitä, ja viihtyminen ystävien seurassa kuuluu ehdottomasti tuohon listaan asioista mitä aion tehdä. :) Tasapaino eri asioiden välillä täytyy aina sovittaa elämäntilanteeseen, se vaihtelee ja on hyvä muistaa, että kaikkein tärkeimpiin asioihin on aina aikaa. Äskettäin päättynyt vuosi tien päällä oli tuskin viimeinen kerta kun haluan matkustaa hiukan pidemmänkin aikaa ilman työvelvoitteita, ja toisaalta saatan hyvinkin taas joskus myöhemmin olla kokopäivätöissä. Tällä hetkellä tuntui kuitenkin parhaalta ratkaisulta tehdä näin.
In English:
Thanks for the nice words. Yes, friends are important, and spending time with friends definitely belongs to the list of things I’m planning to do. :) The right balance always depends on the current situation in life, it’s not static, and it’s good to remember that there’s always time for the most important things. My recent year on the road was probably not the last time I want to travel for a long term without work obligations, and on the other hand I might well accept a full time employment again sometime in the future. However, this solution felt the best right now.
Dear Gabi,
Thanks for your comment. Yes, I do realize that I’m very lucky being able to do this. It’s probably more difficult in Southern Europe and even more so in many other parts of our planet. In New Delhi, India, I saw riksha drivers shivering when trying to sleep in their vehicles during cold January nights. Even after full days of hard work they couldn’t afford a proper place to stay.
However, in many cases in the wealthy countries it’s more of a question of values in the society: career and gathering possessions are so much appreciated that many don’t see any other options. It’s not very common in Finland either to have a non full time job (at least voluntarily, there are also people who work odd hours e.g. in restaurants and would like to have a full time position), except for students who are often working part time. It’s much more common to be working extra hours on top of a full time job without compensation. That happens most often among specialists and people in other high positions, in other words among those who have expertise and good salaries. I’m arguing that many of them would have a possibility to negotiate flexible arrangements if they wanted, and afford to take time off even if it would result in a pay cut.
One good thing about less working hours is that it often translates to savings in daily life. Instead of owning a car, which is a horribly expensive thing, one can spend a bit more time to move around by public transport, bicycle (my personal choice) or walking. In my case, I tend to spend a bit more time nowadays comparing prices, repairing things, buying second hand, cooking, going to the library to read the daily newspaper instead of subscribing it, and doing other small things which eventually make a difference without sacrificing anything. I also keep track of all my spendings in a notebook and think more about what I actually need, which results in buying less. In the end, I find that quite liberating.
A recent CouchSurfing guest of mine, a seasoned traveller, pointed out how grateful we should be of education. Both him and me are in the position that we could land in pretty much any country in the world, penniless, and get a job which would earn a decent living in that country. That’s a big privilege.
Copyright Arto Teräs <ajt@iki.fi>, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. (Unless otherwise mentioned in individual photos or other content.)