Rebrand “Work-Life” Balance

Because we’re way off the mark currently.

Companies love to rebrand things, often thinking that simply changing the name of a product or concept will suddenly result in millions more dollars flowing in. (It won’t.) Here’s what really needs some rebranding in the corporate world: the whole idea of work-life balance.

Here’s the essential problem:

• When a regular, rank-and-file employee hears that term, they think it’s corporate BS fueled by buzzwords.
• When a hard-driving manager hears that term, they think “People will be working less? But we have targets to hit!”
• Both sides are frustrated and kind of assume it’s an impossible place to reach, especially in cultures where throwing yourself on The Cross of Busy is crucial to your relevance.

Towers Watson actually did a study a little while back showing that — assuming you can do it right — the whole idea of “work-life balance” is actually the third-most valuable element to your ultimate revenue success.

So maybe it is something we need to pay attention to, but … we need to get a little more clarity around it.

Here’s an interview in Fast Company with some analytics company CEO in the Mid-Atlantic talking about the value of saying no. Some parts are…