A popular statement these days is to try and find a work-life balance. A happy person is supposed to be able to effectively balance home life and work life on a 50/50 basis, thus making everyone at home happy and everything at work just peachy. Back when I was a human resource professional I drank the work-life balance Kool-Aid and sold the concepts to employees far and wide. Maybe it is possible in Corporate America (which I doubt, and some agree with me), it certainly is not possible in the world of law.  Indeed, check out this article and "Is it safe to go home yet" chart for associates at law firms. 

The term is a misnomer. The truth is you are either going to give a greater percentage to your work at the expense of home or vice versa. It all depends on where your values lie. It is not wrong to give work or life more attention; the key is to be real with yourself and real with your loved ones and hope and pray that they will accept your disposition and stick with you. Involve them in your mission, because when they are involved they are more prone to appreciate what you are doing and thus tolerate you.

Is work-life balance possible? The obvious answer is that anything is possible. But I believe it is improbable. When I reflect back on my life, if I am honest with myself I will be able to point out different times when I put family first and other times when I put work first. Rarely if ever was there a consistent period of true balance. Truthfully, I am wired to put work ahead of life and family more often than not. Does this make me a bad person? Some may think so but I think it just is what it is. My wife, an entrepreneur who understands the challenges with balance, loves and appreciates me for who I am. In fact, we built our marriage foundation on the jagged-edged rocks of entrepreneurship.  Although I now consider myself more a professor than an entrepreneur, the lesson still rings clear that work trumps life many times.  And yes, I even think this is true for lifestyle entrepreneurs who profess that their work "is" their life.  

Be mindful of the fact that if you are (or plan to be), a lawyer, a small business owner, an executive, and yes sometimes even a professor, the business will demand a lot of your time. Just like an infant needs a vast amount of love and nurturing in order to grow into a fantastic person, your career needs the same love and attention during the infant years. In time, it will grow up and begin to take on a life of its own and need a little less of your time. Until then, I can promise you that if you are devoted to career and business growth, the work-life balance scale will tip substantially in the direction of work. I hope you have had a conversation with your home life so that it understands!