Personal balance: How to integrate wellbeing and productivity
I remember when I first met Noel Lee in 1997, at a huge event in Las Vegas. CEO and founder of Monster Cable, he was welcomed on stage like a real rock star. And in a way, he was: inventor, successful entrepreneur, musician before entrepreneur. Hundreds of people, employees, distributors, customers… admired him deeply and greeted him with applause and cheers.
The curious thing is that the admiration was not only for what he had created, but also for how he did it: with extreme productivity. His motto was clear and direct: ‘24/7; sleep when you’re dead’. And this motto he lived by to the letter, as he slept only three or four hours a day and was everywhere, all the time.
I remember that, although most of the people present admired him, I couldn’t help but have a different feeling. It was not a rejection of his person or his career, which is certainly admirable. But his approach to work made me reflect on my own values and the life I wanted to build. Since then, I have distanced myself from such philosophies. Not because they are wrong, but because they are simply not for me.
Such stories are common, especially in cultures such as the US, where heroes tend to be created from extreme trajectories. These figures become role models and references that are often presented as universal. But not all of us need, or want, to live like that.
And while I respect those who choose that rhythm, I’ve found that it’s not mine. I don’t get up at five in the morning to watch the sunrise, nor do I jump into the freezing sea to get active. I don’t run marathons or reduce my rest to four hours a night to ‘seize the day’.
I prefer something simpler and more sustainable: a balanced lifestyle. A lifestyle that allows me to perform well, without disconnecting from myself. That balance is the basis of my productivity and wellbeing. One day I can fully immerse myself in what I do and spend 12 hours creating, solving and accompanying other people. Other days, on the other hand, I only need a few hours to do what’s really important. And that’s fine. Because not every day is the same, nor does it need to be.
Exercise, yes, of course. Moving my body helps me think better, sleep better, feel good. But obsessing about the gym or counting calories is not for me. Eating well, of course, but not following a fad diet every month. Plan my weeks, yes, but leave room for the unexpected and the spontaneous. Seek moments of silence and disconnection, yes, but I don’t need to go on a meditation retreat for a week to know that I need to stop.
Personally, I accompany my days with small rituals that centre me: listening to music, playing the guitar, walking on the beach, leisurely conversation. For me, this is taking care of the source of my energy, my clarity and my creativity. And that is the key to making my efforts more effective and sustainable when I immerse myself in my work.
I find it hard to connect with discourses that sell a single model of life as if it were the universal solution. Just as there are many definitions of success, there are many lifestyles. And none is more valid than another if it helps you to be well and move forward in what matters to you.
We have been talking about this in organisations for years. About the need to integrate wellbeing and work, to rethink what we understand by productivity. But despite the discourse, in many environments it is still difficult to accept that rest is also performance, that stopping is not failure, and that personal balance is not an excuse, but a sustainable strategy.
Personal balance is not a luxury, it is a basis. It is a way to work with more meaning, to live with more presence and to contribute from an authentic place. In the end, everyone has their own path to that balance. It is not about following a formula, but about finding what allows us to be true to ourselves and to offer the best in each moment.
As Oscar Wilde said: ‘Be yourself; the other jobs are already taken’.
Executive Coach for leaders who want to make a difference
