The Young Scholars Network (YSN) organized a workshop at Etmaal 2020 on finding work-life balance in academia. We invited dr. Samula Mescher, who finished her PhD on this topic, and who, after working in academia for eleven years, became an international coach and trainer for scientists. The session was very well attended, as over 25 scholars attended the session and worked on their work-life balance.
During the workshop, Samula debunked three myths that stand in the way of PhD students and other academics from finding work-life balance (Myth 1: Balance and ambition are incompatible; Myth 2: Time management will help you find a better work-life balance; Myth 3: Unbalance is the result of being busy). She also shared important keys to find balance in academia that can immediately be brought into practice. The keys were related to (1) finding what really matters to you, (2) starting to manage your energy and attention more instead of your time, and (3) developing a daily self-care routine. Although the workshop was fairly short, it surely was insightful and useful to foster work-life balance among PhD students and other academics. The large attendance shows that work-life balance is an important and timely topic among young scholars, and we can conclude it was a successful session.