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Over the past two decades, as a
working mother who traveled
frequently around the globe and as
a people-minded business leader,
I’ve had strong and selfish motives
to crack this very hard nut. And I
believed I had—until I moved out
of the corporate world to embrace
my dream career as a Leadership
Coach. I am sure that those of you
who followed a similar path will
nod in agreement while reading
the following paragraphs.
Micheline
Germanos, ACC
Micheline is a Leadership
Coach and consultant who
provides business leaders and
their teams with a uniquely
valuable perspective by
combining 25-plus years of
versatile, international business
and leadership experience
with deep coaching skills,
EQ, intuition and empathy.
Visit Micheline’s website at
GermanosLeadership.com,
connect with her on LinkedIn
and follow her on Twitter:
@inspir2transfrm.
Letting Go of
Boundaries to
Reinvent Work/Life
Balance
Work/life balance continues to be a
top leadership issue. It is arguably the
most common challenge facing highlevel executives, mid-level managers,
small-business owners and individual
contributors. As coaches, we know
that achieving work/life balance is a
very personal journey and we witness
firsthand the challenges our clients face
in building their own, individualized
definitions of this concept.
As an executive in the high-tech
sector and a working mother
with an extensive travel schedule
and two boys at home, over the
years I had trained myself to be
highly efficient—to ensure that
every minute of my (long) days
was productive. My schedule was
completely booked: While my
week was full of predominantly
work-related activities, my
weekends were totally dedicated
to my family. People outside of
my inner circle were horrified
by my packed calendar, but
I was happy. It had not been
an easy journey to reach
this balance. It required selfawareness and clarity regarding
my nonnegotiable priorities,
authentic commitment, and
relentless self-discipline. But I
had always viewed this effort
as a worthwhile investment. It
even gave birth to a “personal
work/life statement”—a onepage document that listed the
resulting practical commitments
that governed my week. I kept
a copy of this statement visible
at home and another visible
in my office. (See “A Powerful
Statement,” at right.)
When I left the corporate world
to pursue my longtime dream of
launching a Leadership Coaching
practice, I was well aware of the
risk and the financial impact this
decision involved. What I had
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20 Coaching World