In a world where burnout continues to affect 39% of Canadian employees according to Mental Health Research Canada, it’s worth recalling the message of author and HR journalist Simone Stolzoff, who in a 2024 TED Talk invited workers to “diversify their identity” to achieve better work-life balance.
When we think about work-life balance, it seems the issue is too often reduced to a matter of time. By promoting the four-day work week or disconnecting in the evening, we suggest that it’s enough to spend fewer hours at work to feel better.
“If we want to develop a healthier relationship with work, we can’t just think about work-life balance in terms of how we spend our time. We need to think about how we build our identity,” he explains.
Indeed, with the simple intention of reserving time for ourselves, it seems that work-related concerns always end up sneaking back into our minds to disrupt our thoughts.
“There’s a reason why our intentions to take care of ourselves and set better boundaries inevitably end up failing. It’s like we’re trying to protect ourselves from the sun with a tiny cocktail umbrella. If we really want to change our relationship with work, we have to do deep work,” he continues.
Above all, we must develop facets of our identity that are not work-related—such as being a friend, a parent, a person of faith, a sports enthusiast, or someone passionate about a hobby, for example.
“Just like an investor benefits from diversifying stocks in their portfolio, we too benefit from diversifying the sources of meaning and identity in our lives.”
Start Small
However, he warns against the temptation to reproduce the “work” dynamic in these new facets of our identity.
“[While writing my book] I spoke to all these hyper-ambitious workaholics, and they said things like: ‘Diversify my identity? Got it! I’m going to read 52 books this year. Or I’m going to run an ultramarathon.’ We even convert our leisure activities into other forms of work. My advice is to start small,” he recommends.
He gives two examples: learning piano and taking a walk with a friend. Science backs him up: studies show that people with varied interests are more creative and better at problem-solving. We can also assume that those who have hobbies manage to recharge their batteries better during time off or when facing stressful events. He also sees a moral argument:
“[Diversifying your identity] means acknowledging that all worthy professions or jobs don’t translate into a CV. It’s also a way of showing that we have a responsibility to contribute to the world in ways other than boosting an organization’s bottom line.”
Create a “Work-Free” Sanctuary
Throughout his talk, Simone Stolzoff offers three concrete strategies for creating the “sanctuary” that gives oxygen to your multiple identities:
Reserve time on your calendar where it is strictly forbidden to work,
Fill that time with activities that reinforce the identities you want to develop,
Join communities that share interests other than work, which forces you to spend time with people who see through different filters and values than those of work.
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