Work-Life Balance has always been an ideal goal for workers. However, the dramatic "work from home" shift caused by the pandemic has made it a hot topic as of late. The search for balance, often associated with Eastern practices, didn't necessarily fit into many of our lives in the Western world. Here, we often associate our ability to take on more and more tasks as a strength. We’ve convinced ourselves that our daily lives should include multitasking and full schedules with constant movement from one thing to the next, leaving little to no time to take inventory of how we are really doing. Well into the shutdown, it became increasingly evident that there was a blurring of work and home boundaries, increased mental health concerns, and an overall decrease in productivity. We were, in a sense, forced to re-evaluate and make some necessary changes to how we approached work, leisure, our physical health, and our mental health.
However, this re-evaluation was not necessary at CANA. CANA is unique in many ways, and one area that truly sets it apart from most workplaces is the amazing culture. An essential part of that culture is how work-life balance has been woven into its fabric since its inception in 2010. When the pandemic occurred, CANA didn’t miss a beat, ensuring their balanced approach remained consistent. Being a fully remote work environment since it began, CANA was not shaken by the shutdown and actually offered training to other organizations to assist them with how to do virtual work well.
So, how can your organization achieve a work-life balance? Well, for starters, evaluate the vision statement of your place of work. For CANA, work-life balance is baked right into their vision statement: “Create an environment that allows our team and clients more time to focus on the things that matter most.” The bottom line is if your company's vision recognizes that their employees' priorities outside of work are key to their successful contribution to work, everyone wins.
Next, review your company’s value statements and assess if they align with your culture. A common statement we make at CANA is, “We live our values.” This isn’t just a saying or a lofty goal we hope to achieve without action. Our entire team demonstrates a commitment to living our values, which cultivates a culture of transparency, accountability, support, and community. We are intentional with each other, where, despite having colleagues all over the country, we make great efforts for in-person co-work events. We are a “cameras on” organization, where value is placed on seeing one another, not just hearing each other. Our values are reviewed regularly, starting with the first day of employment, and reiterated in our internal meetings to maintain a cadence of truly living our values at each level within our organization.
Another step is to build community with your fellow employees through wellness initiatives and a steady process of reviewing and updating your business rules and policies that impact wellness. Allowing a flexible work schedule is one example of a business rule that truly supports work-life balance. Presently, at CANA, we are participating in a Fall Wellness Challenge, where we work within teams to spark our competitive nature and spur each other on in various whole-health activities that promote work-life balance and overall wellness. We have a chat space designated to capture our progress, as well as to include friendly and fun chatter to encourage one another. Each challenge includes activities that positively impact three areas: physical health, nutrition, and emotional health. Scavenger hunts, move goals, virtual team activities - these are just a few items included in our challenges to build comradery and connection, which are essential in team building within other areas of work.
As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, where I primarily worked within the mental and behavioral health services field for over 25 years, my move to CANA as the Director of Business & People Operations almost two years ago opened my eyes to what a balanced and healthy work environment should be. Working for a company that has built itself around its mission statement and lives its values - well, that is the definition of balance to me.
Anna Sterrett is our Director of Business & People Operations here at CANA. You can contact Anna at asterrett@canallc.com or on Linkedin.
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