Work-life balance: is entrepreneurial career the solution?

“Self-employment provides a unique lens through which to examine gender and the work-family nexus

since it is a context in which people have more control than the average employee to fashion their own

connections between work and family.”

In today's world, juggling work and life is a never-ending challenge. Work-life balance has gained

popularity in the media, in common speech, in conversations with employers and the government, and in

HR departments. With its connection to worries about life quality, it has grown in importance in

contemporary societies. 

Entrepreneurship is commonly defined as the pursuit of utilising market opportunities to launch and

oversee a lucrative business enterprise. It's the process of turning current scientific knowledge into

lucrative business opportunities through innovation. Thus, the main perception of entrepreneurship in any

free market economy is that it is a fundamental growth driver. 

“Self-employment is sometimes regarded as the ultimate answer to many workplace problems, particularly

in regard to balancing work and family roles. Self-employment gives individuals “[...] the chance to break

free from bureaucratic control, the ability to decide when, where, and how to work, and the opportunity ‘to

be their own boss’”.

However, the relevance of self-employment extends beyond individuals to society as a whole. Innovation,

economic expansion, and job creation are all facilitated by entrepreneurship. Thus, the study of work-life

balance has an intriguing context in the context of entrepreneurship.

Does gender matter?

Recent research looked into possible variations in the driving forces behind entrepreneurship for men and

women. It was found that a greater proportion of women than men believed that starting their own

business would help them have a better work-life balance. In particular, in an effort to balance the demands

of work and family, more mothers than fathers are pursuing entrepreneurship.One of the main reasons

women become entrepreneurs is the desire to strike a balance between their family and professional

obligations

A ‘Dark Side’ of Humane Entrepreneurship?

The goal of humane entrepreneurship is to balance the business, human, and social cycles of the company

through a people-centered strategic approach. An escalation and intensification of entrepreneurial

concerns could lead to a greater level of focus and commitment to work, which could jeopardize the

WLB of the entrepreneurs. As a result of a greater overlap between the private and professional spheres,

adopting a humane entrepreneurship stance may have certain negative effects on an individual basis,

contributing to conflicts between work and life. 

The entrepreneurs' perceptions of work-life imbalance are likely to be lessened by work engagement and subjective well-being, which are likely to lessen their awareness of the intrusion of work into daily life, which is driven by the prioritization of work over private matters. Long-term mental and/or emotional exhaustion may result from this circumstance, which would be detrimental to the venture's viability. 

The detrimental effects of compassionate entrepreneurship on business owners' work-life balance should be addressed through specialized interventions. Empathy, equity, empowerment, and enablement have been suggested as essential components of a humane entrepreneurship-consistent strategic stance. To address the negative effects of humane entrepreneurship on WLB, a fifth ingredient should be added to the recipe. Establishing a sustainable and compassionate organizational posture requires employees to be actively involved in addressing the strategic, organizational, and management challenges that the company faces. Employee engagement increases the humanization of management techniques and sparks a commitment from the entire organization to promote the eco-social-environmental sustainability of the business.

Further, role balance was discovered as a means of understanding whether business owners who exhibit exceptional balance between a variety of roles are able to reap rewards that go well beyond the division and integration that takes place within these roles. More specifically, the argument was that entrepreneurs would benefit from integration and segmentation as well as other positive outcomes, such as increased self-esteem from skillfully handling multiple roles. Furthermore, by allowing one to manage multiple jobs and roles well, role balance can also provide other benefits (like self-esteem). Accordingly, entrepreneurs who report higher work-life balance tend to be more satisfied and experience fewer psychological issues than those who report lower work-life balance. 

In summary, it is found that entrepreneurs can achieve work-life balance by skillfully juggling the demands of operating a business with their personal lives and interests. Maintaining this equilibrium is essential for reducing burnout, increasing output, and supporting long-term business success. Let's take a closer look at work-life balance strategies designed with entrepreneurs in mind.

References

Palumbo, R. (2022). A ‘Dark Side’ of Humane Entrepreneurship? Unveiling the Side Effects of Humane

-Entrepreneurship on Work–Life Balance. The Journal of Entrepreneurship, p.097135572110693. 

Tahir, R. (2022). Work-life balance: is entrepreneurial career the solution.

Zerwas, C. S. (2019). Work-Life Balance and Women’s Entrepreneurship. Contributions to Management

-Science. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-29804-3

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