Avoid the Work Trap

I've spent two and half years in the corporate tech world. During that time, I have had the pleasure of meeting a lot of people: engineers, managers, C-suite executives, up and down the corporate chain of command.

They are all bright, intelligent people who work hard and sacrifice their personal lives to continuously learn new things and meet the goals of the company. They have a lot to do: from developing software, meeting with stakeholders, designing products, and attending to all the many facets that go into making a product great. They are the first ones to stay late, and put in extra hours to make sure a bug is fixed properly on time, or a customer is satisfied.

It is admirable, and we hit a lot of our sales and product goals as a result of their efforts. But throughout my time working there… I noticed a trend that was easy for busy professionals to fall into. A trend of letting your professional life get in the way of your personal life.

So to all the busy professionals; advancing their career, building a business, or mastering their craft, let me issue a simple reminder, a reminder of the importance of balance.

For the techies in particular, the long working hours and the fact it's the field that is 90% men, makes it easy for guys to fall into a mindset that doesn't serve them. It's a mindset that causes two, three, five years of your life to fly by without ever as much as asking someone out, going on a date, or having a girlfriend. It's a mindset that keeps you complacent and frustrated on a personal level. It's a mindset that is founded on false assumption.

It's a mindset sounds something like this:

• "Dating is a waste of time and isn't worth the energy."
• "I'm too busy with work commitments to date right now."
• "I have to earn more money and get a better lifestyle first, then I'll be set up to meet someone special."

These assumptions could be the reason that few years have gone by, and you have missed out on the fulfillment of a well-rounded life, with a partner that supports you and accepts you for you.

I agree that your purpose should be the most important priority, but when you neglect other areas of your life, you miss out on the art of fulfillment that is so fundamental for a happy life.

So to all the professionals who might've slipped into this mindset, let me propose an alternative viewpoint that you might've not considered.

Instead of dating someone who distracts you from your goals and doesn't share your vision, what if you had a partner who encourages you to reach goals and believes in your vision?

Instead of being difficult when you have to put in the extra hours, what if you had a partner who understood the struggle and realized what it takes to go the extra mile?

Instead of waiting until an arbitrary point in the future when you have the next promotion, more money, a better car, what if you had someone who recognized your value now?

If this resonates with you, feel free to drop a comment or send me a message.