Your Health...a social responsibility

Maintaining a good work-life balance is essential and all of us have heard this.  But, what does this work-life balance mean?  Is it coming home on time and then plonking oneself on to a sofa and watching TV?  Is it good compartmentalisation of office and home so that we don't carry the problems of home to office and vice-versa?  I used to think that it is easy to leave your thoughts at the doorstep of your office (when coming from home) or of your home (when returning from office). I have tried this many times and failed.  I have now stopped trying and carry my moods through.  I have found that what works for me is to be in the moment wherever you are and with whoever you are.

To me, work-life balance is where you are able to mentally focus completely and honestly at whatever you are doing at office and home...meaning, you should be capable of focussing well at work and you have a passion that consumes your attention at home.  This truly brings out the best in most of us because if we are too focussed on only one aspect - either home or office - we get stale and neglect the other aspect.

Imbalance in work and life causes stress and that in turn impacts health.  Does it worry you if your health is impacted?  Of course, it does. Does it worry others?  Of course, it does.  Your family, friends, colleagues and well wishers are all worried.  The cascading impact is huge.  So, to think that your health is a private issue and that it impacts only you is totally out of whack.  Your health is a social responsibility for you and you owe it not only to yourself to stay healthy but to others as well.  These others value your relationship with them and so, you need to respect that.

I heard a story about a press conference that the Ambani brothers and their late father did in the US.  This was when they were raising funds for one of their projects in the 1990s.  Those were apparently the days when Anil Ambani was fat.  Someone from the audience asked him as to how he could take care of the health of the company and its shareholders if he did not take care of his own health.  Anil came back to India, hired a personal trainer, worked out daily and started getting fit.  After a year, he was in much better shape. He took a photograph of himself and sent it to the person who asked him the question and thanked him for asking that question.  Even to date, he stays very fit. This clearly shows how Anil took the suggestion seriously. Obviously, he had understood that his health was a social responsibility. Millions of shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers, his family and many others need him to stay healthy.

The other thing about health is that it is wealth.  It really hits your pocket when you lose it.  I was calculating what it costs to handle a major health problem.  It is equivalent of paying for your gym for at least 15 years.  So, if we had hit the gym daily for the last 15 years, we may have prevented a major health problem.  Further, once we get hit with a major health problem, it creates a deep psychological impact in us.  This reduces the quality of our life.  That is why we hear the saying, "Health is wealth"...though, it is also true that it hits our pockets!!!