I Said No!

It was 4pm on Friday. The clock was ticking away, and there were just 2 more hours left before I would walk to Grand Central Station to catch the 4 train uptown and be free for 2 days. I was away on a business trip to the Maryland/D.C. area from Monday-Wednesday, while trying to develop a quality vs. quantity work-life balance between working full time and being a Mama and wife, something that’s been challenging me since I started my new job. Therefore, quality time with my boys this weekend was the first priority on my list in order to make everything work together and come out on top with that ideal sort of balance.

Then, the unthinkable happened. My boss and CEO of the company came into my office and started by saying “Wanna make a little extra cash this weekend?” Grrrr, was all that I could think. He was asking if I could help out in the retail store the next day from 10-4pm because they needed an extra hand due to the foot traffic from the Tribeca Film festival.

I took a deep breath, and held strong with “no” being my answer, due to my determination to keep both of my worlds in balance. Furthermore, just because I had experience in retail didn’t mean that it was something I liked doing. In fact, I left that industry for a reason, because I loathe it!

I did feel a little bit of guilt for saying no, because I would never want to come off as being a slacker. But I was also very happy with myself because I know that I am a hard worker.  And even more importantly, I am able to feel good about my decisions at the end of the day.  Without my strong commitment to both parts of my life, I know I would not be the complete person I strive to be.

So I came home on Friday, and gave my boys lots of kisses, very happy that I could wake up and cuddle them in the morning for two straight days. Now there’s some sweet balance! What more could a Mama want?

How do you find your work/life balance?

Fashionably Yours,

Allison