Podcast: When Life & Work Collide
A convo about tending the tensions in your many roles
Let’s say the loud part quietly: everyday life is theatre. We are always playing roles and following scripts and taking cues. At any given moment, e.g., I’m a partner, parent, manager, team member, instructor, runner.
And I’m sure you, too, can roll credits in your own biopic:
Executive Producer: You
Gaffer: You
Person Who Says Witty Things Few Understand: You
Camry Stunt Coordinator: You
Assistant to the Regional Production Assistant: You
All this role-play means, that in any moment of professional life, you’re playing a part that some other part of you doesn’t feel like doing. And sometimes, you stumble, forget your lines, don the wrong costume, break your poise.
This week on the Mode/Switch Pod, Emily, David, LaShone, and I discuss how one role you play (parent or a friend, say) obstructs another role (team lead or clerk, say). You’ll hear us sharing stories and proposing shifts in thinking and habit that will help you do more than cope when work’s a lot.
This podcast is coming out a day late. (What? You didn’t notice? The Mode/Switch isn’t the most essential part of your inbox?)
The day we Mode/Switchers captured this conversation (Wednesday) I got scammed on the way to work by some Irish guy in an apartment in Denver. And all I was trying to do was transfer gas utilities from our current house to our new house. After chatting with the anti-fraud team at Discover, I joined a tricky meeting with my supervisor. At noon, I met with a grad student before sliding into the podcast chair with the gang and trotting off to a communication workshop.
All day long, my wife and I were texting each other about our upcoming move.
For none of these roles, did I feel like I really and truly knew my lines. Here’s what I mean. Most days, I’m a pretty quick to say, “Hey, g’morning!” And most days, I mean it more than less. But on this particular day, my greetings and my smiles felt—weird. As I passed people in the hall—”Nice to see you!”—I didn’t recognize my own voice.
I wasn’t just role-playing. I was masking. The gap between my personal and professional roles felt enormous.
And then yesterday, while loading up the minivan with crates of books and socks, I completely forgot to post this podcast.
Sheesh.
You don’t have to be a person of faith to recognize that this time between Good Friday and Easter can be quiet space for finding your bearings in all your roles. I hope this podcast helps you do that.
Not me, though. I gotta go get some donuts for the peeps helping us move.
-craig
