Balancing work and family life

[Cootie-Monster]

How many of you work irregular hours or have a spouse doing so? Like maybe you need to work weekends or late into the night.

 

How do you balance your work comitments with quality time with your kids?

 

Or what if you and your spouse have such different schedules you rarely see each other during the week?

[Ace]

well I am one...having almost daily night conf call. Well, I can say it really tough to balance only family time is dinner time..but then my kid is still young so maybe not that bad...

[Joseph22]

How many of you work irregular hours or have a spouse doing so? Like maybe you need to work weekends or late into the night.

 

How do you balance your work comitments with quality time with your kids?

 

Or what if you and your spouse have such different schedules you rarely see each other during the week?

 

 

My wife irregular hours (NURSE)

 

Every free time is for the kids lor.

 

Only my wife schedules is irregular, mine? fixed so we see each other often. but dont have much weekends to go out with.

[Tigerwoods]

I am one. until last year Financial Crisis woke up my blardy idea.

1st time I see my office retrench pple and I realise that those colleagues also work so long hours but still kena.

From last year April until now, I'm like woke up from a Trance and started to go home earlier from normally 10~11pm down to 6pm now.

 

My wife is homemaker also initially find it very strange I come home early.

Of course I still have 10pm during project days...

 

I realise that many SGeans are working machines.

Don't become this : Worked till Work becometh you.

 

I also realise this sad truth :

I could not even hold a simple conversation with my children initially.

Now I'm able to know their likes, dislikes, their character, everything.

I have lost out to savour the very precious growing up years of my 1st 2 children...

Yes, I can feel my boss is giving me a colder shoulder and promotion stalled... But I did not slacken my work quality at all. I became more efficient actually.

 

And No I don't want to have NO retirement age.

[Tigerwoods]

well I am one...having almost daily night conf call. Well, I can say it really tough to balance only family time is dinner time..but then my kid is still young so maybe not that bad...

This is exactly the same Mistake I made - thinking my kid still young not that bad.

It is because of this wrong thinking I missed out the precious moments of my kids.

 

Listening to this link : Cats in the Cradle

http://www2.mp3raid.com/search/download-mp...the_cradle.html

[Windwaver]

Guess mine's not so bad. Occasionally get long hours due to important milestones to hit but most of the time just office hours

[Mustank]

long time ago, i made this decision to be a small man. a man with not much marnie, not much assets, not much of a career (just a job), just a family

 

time is not what we can get back. i only got this 12 years before they grow up. for this reason, i took up photography.

 

end up i earn 4 times lesser than my FYP mate, drive a pigkarp, live a 4 room flat far far away from my workplace, no career, just a job.......

[Yattokame]

I'm glad I read this thread

 

I'm a workaholic who can work till 11plus and reach home, sleep and return to office by 7am.

 

For this, I'm appreciated and paid well.

 

I'm a father-to-be.....and after reading this thread I don't want to miss the growing up period of my kids. On the other hand I am worried my income will be compromised.

 

Guess I'll have to compromise the money :)

[Ferraricalifornia]

how your survive office job nia....???

[Freestylers09]

Watch 岁月神偷

 

nice!

[Ahtong]

Haiz, this kind of topic really bring back memories.

 

I rarely saw my parents when growing up because they worked late and even full day on Saturdays. At first I stayed with my grandparents then later on at home with a maid. During school sports / prize day, almost everybody's parents came down except mine. Win award also no one to celebrate with. After school, I would hang out with the neighbourhood kids until around 6pm when they all went home for dinner. I would still be playing by myself until 8pm+. The only interaction I can remember having with my parents was Sunday lunch.

 

By the time their schedule stablized, I was already in my teens. I don't begrudge my parents because they were really working hard to make a living. Having said that, this is not the type of experience I want my own kids to go through. Till this day, I still feel a bit emotionally estranged from them.

 

My sis on the other hand was born some 13 years after me. Not only did she enjoy normal family time with her parents, Princess also had a rather doting elder brother to bully. Haiz, really a tale of night and day.

 

[Ccjna]

My wife irregular hours (NURSE)

 

Every free time is for the kids lor.

 

Only my wife schedules is irregular, mine? fixed so we see each other often. but dont have much weekends to go out with.

 

Same like my bro's wife who is a nurse too but they will always try to off together n company each other.

[Ace]

This is exactly the same Mistake I made - thinking my kid still young not that bad.

It is because of this wrong thinking I missed out the precious moments of my kids.

 

Listening to this link : Cats in the Cradle

http://www2.mp3raid.com/search/download-mp...the_cradle.html

 

so now I have decided to move on but then still looking around. In my whole career, I have to say this is the most shitty job I ever have..still wander I get into this s--t hole......... Now my kids is asking me papa you got conf call tonight............and of course I do dread the conf call...

Edited September 1, 2010 by Ace

[Ferraricalifornia]

i tell you,

 

the time spent with your family is priceless....

 

forget about earning big bucks....

 

so long as you can spend quality time with your family members no matter the job (still must provide for your needs lah of course),

 

is enough already....

[inlinesix]

i tell you,

 

the time spent with your family is priceless....

 

forget about earning big bucks....

 

so long as you can spend quality time with your family members no matter the job (still must provide for your needs lah of course),

 

is enough already....

R u earning ur own buck yet??

[Ferraricalifornia]

you again arh???

 

uncle....

 

[inlinesix]

you again arh???

 

uncle....

 

I am not unker hor. I m juz older than u.

[Maldini03]

I am one. until last year Financial Crisis woke up my blardy idea.

1st time I see my office retrench pple and I realise that those colleagues also work so long hours but still kena.

From last year April until now, I'm like woke up from a Trance and started to go home earlier from normally 10~11pm down to 6pm now.

 

My wife is homemaker also initially find it very strange I come home early.

Of course I still have 10pm during project days...

 

I realise that many SGeans are working machines.

Don't become this : Worked till Work becometh you.

 

I also realise this sad truth :

I could not even hold a simple conversation with my children initially.

Now I'm able to know their likes, dislikes, their character, everything.

I have lost out to savour the very precious growing up years of my 1st 2 children...

Yes, I can feel my boss is giving me a colder shoulder and promotion stalled... But I did not slacken my work quality at all. I became more efficient actually.

 

And No I don't want to have NO retirement age.

 

Haha... I find yr story rather familiar. I work in a bank, we work damn long hrs, 9am to 10pm everyday, yes it is everyday.

 

After the financial crisis, i see my friends getting retrench and to avoid retrenchment we work even harder so as not to be the last few of the month. otherwise tio axe. I see my friend kenna retrench I also sadz.

 

after a long haul only the good horse remains, but this few horse are already severely overwork already, no more drive. This yr is much better, the bank started hiring again, they hire all the fresh graduates to replace those that are axed and old horse like me who got no more drive left. Eventually I left(last month), after seeing many fresh grad come and go, this time round i dun think i can compete with fresh grad who are full of drive anymore.

 

moral of the story, dun sell yr soul to the company, the company can just replace u eventually.