Summary: Wondering how to achieve work-life balance? In this article, I will share a compilation of the best work-life balance quotes from influential people around the world. I will also discuss the impact of these quotes and how they may change your perspective on life and how your time is spent.
Introduction
I was really surprised to find so many great work life balance quotes. Famous writers, scholars, inventors, world leaders, successful business executives, life coaches, motivational speakers, Nobel Prize winners, etc., across multiple generations have spoken about work life balance. It’s definitely not a new thought or idea, we have just more recently put a name to it.
Best Work Life Balance Quotes
I think you’ll find that the majority of these quotes are one or all of the following: motivational, insightful, eloquent, relatable, and impactful. I’ve highlighted some of my favorites in the images throughout the article. Enjoy.
“No one on his deathbed ever said, ‘I wish I had spent more time at the office.”
– Paul Tsongas, Politician
“Either you run the day, or the day runs you.”
– Jim Rohn, Motivational Speaker
“Be steady and well-ordered in your life so that you can be fierce and original in your work.”
– Gustave Flaubert, Writer
“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.”
– Albert Einstein
“Be moderate in order to taste the joys of life in abundance.”
– Epicurus, Philosopher
“Struggle doesn’t make success happen. In fact, struggle can prevent succes from happening. IF you seek struggle you will find it. if you seek ease, you will find it.”
-Rich Fettke, Success Coach & Author
“Do less, be more.”
– Elizabeth Grace Saunders, Author
“Balance is not better time management, but better boundary management. Balance means making choices and enjoying those choices.”
– Betsy Jacobson, Business Consultant
“Don’t confuse having a career with having a life.”
– Hillary Clinton, former US Secretary of State
“Work life balance is not an entitlement or benefit. Your company cannot give it to you. You have to create it for yourself.”
– Matthew Kelly, Author
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”
– Stephen Covey, Author
“You have to balance your passions, not your time.”
– Lisa Sugar
“You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.”
– Charles Buxton, Writer, and politician
“Always take some of the play, fun, freedom, and wonder of the weekend into your week and your work.”
– Rasheed Ogunlaru, Life Coach
“You will never feel truly satisfied by work until you are satisfied by life.”
– Heather Schuck, Author
“Most people chase success at work, thinking that will make them happy. The truth is that happiness at work will make you successful.”
– Alexander Kjerulf, “Chief Happiness Officer”
“We think, mistakenly, that success is the result of the amount of time we put in at work, instead of the quality of time we put in.”
-Arianna Huffington, Co-founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Huffington Post
“Never get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.”
– Dolly Parton, Country Singer
“You don’t have to make yourself miserable to be successful.”
– Andrew Wilkinson, founder of MetaLab
“Failure of your company is not failure in life. Failure in your relationship is.”
– Ev Williams, Co-founder of Medium and Twitter
“Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them – work, family, health, friends and spirit and you’re keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life.”
– Brian Dyson, former Vice Chairman and COO of Coca-Cola
“You can’t have everything you want, but you can have the things that really matter to you.”
– Marissa Mayer, President and CEO of Yahoo
“I believe a balanced life is essential, and I try to make sure that all of our employees know that and live that way. It’s crucial to me as a manager that I help ensure that our employees are as successful as our customers and partners. I also think that employees these days expect less of a separation of work and personal life. That doesn’t mean that work tasks should encroach upon our personal time, but it does mean that employees today expect more from the companies for whom they work. Why shouldn’t your workplace reflect your values? Why is ‘giving back’ not a part of our jobs? The answer for us is to integrate philanthropy with work.”
– Marc Benioff, Chairman and CEO of SalesForce
“Women in particular need to keep an eye on their physical and mental health, because if we’re scurrying to and from appointments and errands, we don’t have a lot of time to take care of ourselves. We need to do a better job of putting ourselves higher on our own ‘to do’ list.”
– Michelle Obama, former First Lady
“Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.”
– Sydney J. Harris, Journalist
“When in doubt, choose the kids. There will be plenty of time later to choose work.”
– Anna Quindlen, Author
“If you want your children to turn out well, spend twice as much time with them and half as much money.”
– Abigail Van Buren, Advice Columnist
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.”
– Michael Altshuler, Motivational Speaker
“Time is really the only capital that any human being has, and the only thing he can’t afford to lose.”
– Thomas Edison, Inventor
“If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.”
– Mother Teresa
“A career is wonderful, but you can’t curl up with it on a cold night.”
– Marilyn Monroe, Actress
“It’s all about quality of life and finding a happy balance between work and friends and family.”
– Philip Green
“Invest in your work life balance. Time with friends and family is as important as times at work. Getting that out of balance is a path toward unhappiness.”
– Stephen Gillett
“You can have it all. You just can’t have it all at once.”
– Oprah Winfrey
“The challenge of work life balance is without question one of the most significant struggles faced by modern man.”
– Stephen Covey, Author
“I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.”
– Anna Quindlen
“Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.”
– Stephen Covey, Author
“Burnout is about resentment. Preventing it is about knowing yourself well enough to know what it is you’re giving up that makes you resentful.”
– Marissa Mayer
“A time for everything: A time to relax and a time to be busy, a time to frolic and a time to labor, a time to receive and a time to give, a time to begin and a time to finish.”
– Jonathan Lockwood Huie
“The gift of balance in your life – May you find the balance of life, time for work but also time for play. Too much of one thing ends up creating stress that no one needs in their life.”
– Catherine Pulsifer
“I have so much admiration for women who are mothers, who balance family and work.”
– Beyoncé
“Better learn balance. Balance is key.”
– Mr. Miyagi
“Balance activity with serenity, wealth and simplicity, persistence with innovation, community with solitude, familiarity with adventure, constancy with change, leading with following.”
– Jonathan Lockwood Huie
“No matter how busy you are, or how busy you think you are, the work will always be there tomorrow, but your friends might not be.”
– Anonymous
“Work, love and play are the great balance wheels of man’s being.”
– Orison Swett Marden
“We have overstretched our personal boundaries and forgotten that true happiness comes from living an authentic life fueled with a sense of purpose and balance.”
– Dr. Kathleen Hall
“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm, and harmony.”
– Thomas Merton
“To have someone who never makes a mistake, never finds her personal life in disarray, never worries about work life balance? I think that would be unreal.”
– Sophie Kinsella
“When I think about work life balance, I don’t imagine it as a perfect day where I got to spend the exact right amount of time having an impact at work and snuggling with my kids at home. I never achieve that. But over the course of a month, or a quarter, or a year, I try to make time for the people and experiences I value.”
– Jane Park
“Framing the issue of work life balance – as if the two were dramatically opposed – practically ensures work will lose out. Who would ever choose work over life?”
– Sheryl Sandberg
“You can’t do a good job if your job is all you do.”
– Katie Thurmes
“When you’re gone would you rather have your gravestone say, ‘He never missed a meeting?’ Or one that said, ‘He was a great father.’”
– Steve Blank, Author
“Balance, peace, and joy are the fruit of a successful life. It starts with recognizing your talents and finding ways to serve others by using them.”
– Thomas Kinkade
“Reconsider your definitions. We are prone to judge success by the index of our salaries or the size of our automobiles rather than by the quality of our service and relationship to mankind.”
– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Conclusion
This concludes part 3 of our Work Life Balance series. Hopefully, you’ve found some meaningful work life balance quotes that hit home in this article. Some of the most influential people around the world are talking and concerned about the importance of work life balance. If these people are making it a priority, while still achieving a ton of success, we should too.