Another view on Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg’s recommendation to put more time and energy into your job in order to move up in the business world (Leaning In) comes from Money magazine in an article by Elaine Pofeldt, Lean Out. She suggests men and women in the workplace ask themselves whether, “. . . depending on what you want and where you are in your life, you’d actually be better off leaning out, directing your best efforts into fulfilling career and personal priorities that you, not your employer, have set. . . . Many people just want to get off the treadmill and have a more satisfying life.”
This idea, of taking into account one’s personal life and relationships, along with career aspirations, is a theme that runs through much of my fiction, including my short stories and especially my forthcoming novel, Boundaries: A Love Story as well as the novel I’m currently writing (Valhalla). In all of my stories the characters face conflicts between their personal lives and the demands of work, and try to find a satisfying solution, which often involves compromise and rethinking values.
“Evaluate how you invest your time,” Pofeldt recommends, which is just what Natalya, the protagonist in my new novel is starting to do when, after a harrowing visit to her Death Row client, thinks, “You have to be careful how you spend yourself.” CNNMoney.com July 2013