takasuu/iStock(NEW YORK) — Parents know a thing or two about work-life balance: it just doesn’t exist in many cases.
But maybe it could — if bosses would take a cue from one CEO who penned a viral post on the topic.
Daniel Abrahams owns Hustlr, a digital marketing agency in Sydney, Australia. He also has three kids. And when one of them was going to receive an award at a school assembly earlier this month, he went. Simple as that.
He wrote in part, “Why? Because I’m human. I’m not trying to impress people how hard I work. I prefer to build an open and transparent culture. As a leader, it starts with me. No one should hide their personal life at work, or apologize for it.”
“Do you need to pick the kids up from school? Go for it. Need to be home to accept a delivery of your new couch? Awesome. Text me a picture,” he wrote.
Abrahams’ post, he told ABC News’ Good Morning America, has reached more then 26 million people and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.
“Essentially the post says that if you have to choose between work and your family, pick your family, and be honest about it at work because people will understand. It took me five minutes to write it,” he said.
He’s shocked something so simple is considered to be radical by some.
“Some have labelled it as a revolution for the corporate industry to embrace humanity,” he said. “Others have commented how they agree we should act with greater transparency, provide more flexibility and help each other find proper balance to our lives.”
Abrahams hopes employers read the post and “see the need to bring a more personal, human touch to the workplace. It’s actually good for their business.”
“I think there’s too much fear amongst employees who feel they have to hide their personal lives because, if they don’t, their career opportunities will be hampered,” he told GMA. “This leads to employee unhappiness, regret and resentment. I don’t want people to ever feel guilty about making their family a priority. In my opinion, employers who treat their staff like humans and show they care about them on a personal level, will receive more buy-in, loyalty and trust.”
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