Most people think work-life balance is about splitting your time 50/50.

8 hours work.

8 hours sleep.

8 hours life.

But that math doesn’t add up when you:

→ commute

→ handle chores

→ reply to late-night emails

→ juggle your toddler’s meltdown at 6am

→ or wake up to a Slack ping from your boss on a Sunday morning

That’s not balance. That’s a trap.

And this week, I saw 3 clients hit breaking points.

Each of them was burnt out.

All of them were considering quitting without a plan.

None of them wanted to jump into another job just for the pay.

So I shared this exact framework I created for my old team when my ex-co-CEO, Santosh Charan, gave me a blank canvas to help the company rethink “balance.”

He asked me,

“What’s your take on work-life balance?”

I gave him this:

Not balance.

Integration.

Instead of treating “work” and “life” like two separate forces fighting over time…

What if we bring them together?

Not 50/50. Not either/or.

But both/and.

Work with life.

Life within work.

When the things you do overlap with the things you love, that’s the sweet spot.

→ If you love teaching, find a role where mentorship is key.

→ If you enjoy writing, start documenting your journey as a designer.

→ If you’re a parent, block time to be fully present during your toddler’s bedtime.

Here’s what work-life integration looked like for me:

→ 30-hour weeks

→ Play breaks with my toddler at 4pm

→ Coaching calls with clients in the evenings (after dinner)

→ Teaching once a week at the local uni

→ A 6-figure side business helping UXers land jobs

→ A day off midweek just to breathe

The funny part?

When I stopped chasing balance and started designing integration,

my energy came back.

My creativity exploded.

And work started feeling like life again.

If you’re burning out right now…

Ask yourself this:

What if I stopped chasing “balance” and started designing a life where work and life overlap?

What’s one action you can take this week to integrate something you love into your current work?

Let me know. Hit reply.

Joseph