Excerpt
From
Joined at the Heart:Not enough time. Not enough energy. Not enough sleep. Faced with too many competing demands, many families find they simply don't have enough hours in the day to give both work and family their absolute best. With record numbers of parents putting in stunningly long-and steadily increasing-hours at the workplace, the hard truth is that in America work and family are wildly out of balance. Work is important, but so is family. We want good jobs, good incomes, and a strong economy. But we also want strong families, good marriages, and the chance to be good parents to our children. We want a decent night's sleep and time with loved ones and friends. In short, we want well-rounded lives that are fulfilling both at work and with our families.
The realization that there is no easy way to achieve this goal is beginning to sink in. To bring our lives back into balance, we must do more than decide how much we value our families: for most people, that's not difficult at all. The real challenge is measuring the relative values of work and family and then manifesting those values in our daily lives.