Carla Harris, a banker, provides practical tips for achieving work-life balance and staying true to oneself in a career. She emphasizes the importance of saying no and making intentional choices to protect your well-being.
Maintaining work-life balance is crucial for long-term success and requires intentionally prioritizing personal interests and relationships.
Saying no is necessary to maintain focus on what truly matters and to set boundaries for work and personal life.
Deep dives
Importance of Work-Life Balance and Outside Interests
Carla Harris emphasizes the importance of work-life balance and maintaining outside interests throughout her career. From the beginning, she promised herself that she would play hard alongside working hard. Harris intentionally put activities and events that mattered to her in her calendar, ensuring that she made time for things like singing lessons or going to the Apollo Theater. Even when she got married and had a child, she continued to prioritize investing in her personal relationships. Harris firmly believes that any relationship requires intentional effort and that it's crucial to make time for loved ones and build connections.
The Power of Saying No and Setting Priorities
Carla Harris highlights the importance of saying no and setting priorities. She acknowledges that it can be challenging for those who are used to being masters and executors to say no. However, Harris emphasizes that saying no is necessary to maintain focus on what truly matters. She shares a personal anecdote about turning down a request to sing at a funeral because it conflicted with spending important time with her daughter and her work commitments. Ultimately, she learned that saying no, even to well-intentioned requests, is an essential part of setting boundaries and preserving balance in life.
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Prioritizing Work-Life Balance and Saying No to Protect Your Well-Being
On today’s Throwback Week episode, Carla Harris — banker, wife, mom, singer, speaker, and friend — serves up some practical tips to help you have more work-life balance.