Bloomberg: Finding work-life balance

UC professor says individual preferences are key to flourishing

There's not just one right way to achieve work-life balance, rather, it's a matter of personal preference, a professor in the University of Cincinnati's Carl H. Lindner College of Business told Bloomberg.

Lindner College of Business faculty members Kevin Hardy, Elaine Hollensbe, and Laurens Steed, photographed for a story about the Future of Work.

Elaine Hollensbe

Academics such as Elaine Hollensbe, PhD, a professor in the Department of Management, identify two main ways that people approach work: “integrators,” who prefer a seamless blend between work and life, and “segmenters,” who prefer clearer boundaries.

“A lot of this comes down to individual preference,” Hollensbe said, adding most people fall somewhere in between the two.

While achieving work-life balance might seem like an individual responsibility, Hollensbe said, employers also share some responsibility. She suggested it's wise to give employees a choice in how they want to integrate or segment their work and personal lives, when possible.

“There's more of this idea of how do we get to flourishing versus how do we get to balance,” Hollensbe said.

See more from Bloomberg.

Featured image at top: Photo/Bruno Cervera on Unsplash

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