I have a longstanding issue with the word balance. A couple of years ago I wrote several posts on the topic of Lopsided Living encapsulating my ideas on purposefully pursuing an unbalanced life. I’ve questioned the biblical veracity of this modern notion of balance and the practicality of attempting to live it out. In both cases I’ve come up with the same answer … it’s no good.
Work Shift by Anne Bogel, writer of Modern Mrs. Darcy, beautifully explains another view of this same “balance rejection.” She says,
We threw work/life balance out the window. We aimed to blend them instead of balancing them, and we were nothing if not surprised at how well it worked for our family. We love this holistic blend, and we’re never going back.
I wanted to stand up and applaud! Her well-researched and beautifully articulated book includes numerous stories of women in various situations that require what Anne has termed “share care.” By illustrating how this concept allows each family to construct their own blend of work and home, Anne has offered us all a glimmer of hope in a world that screams the need to “do it all.”
Work Shift begins with a history lesson of when and how we arrived at the peculiar place of adults willingly sacrificing time with family for time away from them. By exploring the predicators of this phenomenon, Anne articulates the reason so many of us feel deeply uncomfortable with the rush and demands of modern life: It doesn’t work for families.
From that foundation, Work Shift brings into focus the technology that has allowed the modern movement toward working at home, telecommuting, job-sharing, etc. Of course, all of that is just the beginning of the book!
The best part of Work Shift is the stories of women explaining how blending their work and home experiences and involving their husbands in this paradigm has changed both their perceptions and their realities.
This book is a valuable resource for anyone who is overwhelmed, frustrated, and ready to explore a new way of doing life. I highly recommend it, especially for women in their late 20s and early 30s who are just beginning the task of managing marriage, children, job, and home … you just might find the answer you’ve been waiting for in Work Shift.
Thank you, Anne, for the opportunity to review Work Shift … but even more, thank you for writing such an encouraging and practical guide for women who are tired of the chase to “do it all.” You’ve offered us freedom from the false notion of balance and given us a framework for a much better method.
You can get your copy of Work Shift for just $8! Click here to purchase a PDF of Work Shift or purchase Work Shift for your Kindle or Kindle app
Anne has graciously agreed to give a copy of Work Shift to one of you! To be entered you just need to answer the following question in the comments:
How have you been wearied by the quest to have it all?
{This giveaway will close at 10 pm CST Saturday and the winner will be notified by email on Monday.}
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Experiencing cancer has helped my priorities. Yet, I still fight busyness! With twin little boys, I feel like the pressure is on to always be doing something. I feel like the world expects it of us and we easily fall into the trap!
This books sounds wonderful. We have found ourselves in a rural town, resigned our position as worship leaders at the church we came here for. We are now in the process of trusting to God to see what life will look like for us…here, there, somewhere. In the process, options are not plentiful in a small community, we are looking to secure multiple odd jobs at all hours to “make it work”. We also homeschool, since the system here is in the bottom 5% of the state. Balance and blend speak to my heart. I have nooooo idea how to navigate this season. Good thing God does. I just wish He’d send me the e-mail and master plan. 😉 Thanks for the opportunity and the encouragement.
As a military ministry wife, the mom of a teen and an almost-teen who are both very active, a college instructor, a teacher who is trying to break into the district’s substitute system for extra money, and a women’s ministry leader for two organizations–all while dealing with being temporarily hearing impaired and an impending second surgery on the horizon–I’m often tired! Leaving room for God to work (Dr. Richard Swenson’s idea of Margin) is always a struggle for me. I try to do everything asked of me, and I just can’t fit it all in sometimes.
I have been wearied by the expectations of others. Although I am constantly asking God to show me how to please Him and Him alone, I find myself succumbing to the pressures put upon me by others or even by just my perceptions of their expectations. Technology has seemed to create a sense of urgency for everyone. This book sounds amazing – where do I find the time to even read it? I guess if I won it, I would see it as divine intervention that I must make time. 🙂
LeAnn
I am weary right now with thoughts scurrying through my mind of what could be done, needs to be done, hasn’t been done, you name it! However, as I sit and watch my little one play on the couch I feel the Holy Spirit gently reminding me that this is what life is all about! Oh the struggle of fighting the day to day weariness-thank God He is bigger than any of those battles:)!