I want to tell you something that took me far too long to understand.
Work-life balance is not something that eventually appears on your horizon like a reward for all the sacrifice you have made. It does not arrive on its own. No one hands it to you when you’ve finally proven yourself. You have to choose it, deliberately. Again and again.
My dad died at 52 years old of a massive heart attack. He played tennis, golf, and seemed physically fit. And he was gone in an instant.
Standing at the edge of my own inheritance, I made a quiet promise to myself: this is not going to happen to me. But then I walked straight into the very same pattern. Working too many hours. Running on caffeine. Saying yes to everything the business demanded and no to nearly everything my own body and spirit were asking for.
That is how our profession pulls you in. Because this work is not a job, it is a calling. And when people are grieving, you do not clock out, you stay and serve.
And that is beautiful, until it isn’t.
What finally helped me: four small shifts that made a real difference.
First, you have to start your mornings differently. I know not everyone is a morning person. I was not. I am still not. But I learned to begin my day with quiet. A few minutes of mindfulness reading. Some deep breathing. A little meditation to center and ground myself before the day’s demands took over. No phone. No television. Just stillness.
It changed everything.
Second, know when your lull hits. We all have one: that time of day when your eyes glaze, your focus scatters, and your body is simply done. A doctor in kinesiology once told a room full of funeral professionals that naps are highly underrated. She was right. A 15 to 20 minute rest at the right moment can restore your energy more effectively than another cup of coffee ever could. Know your rhythms, and honor them.
Third, you need a transition. If you work from home or live close to work, create a ritual that marks the shift from work to the rest of your life. Fifteen minutes with a book that has nothing to do with business. Music that makes you feel something good. A walk. Whatever gives your nervous system the signal that you are allowed to stop now.
And how you end your day matters just as much. Put the phone down. Step away from messages you did not get around to. They will be there in the morning. Your sleep, your renewal, your capacity to show up tomorrow: those cannot wait.
At Baue’s, we made this a culture.
We installed break rooms with relaxing chairs, sound machines, and small indoor waterfalls so our staff could decompress during the day. We had walking paths marked around our cemetery and encouraged everyone to take walk breaks together. We brought in lunches, had chili cook-offs, held staff barbecues, and found ways to bring a little joy and lightness into a profession that carries a great deal of heaviness.
We gave our people permission to rest. And that permission changed them, it changed us.
Here is the truth: if you pour all of yourself into the business and leave nothing for you, you will eventually have nothing left to give anyone.
Taking care of yourself is not selfish. It is the most responsible thing you can do as a leader in a caregiving profession.
So tell me: what is one thing you can add to your day this week that is just for you? Not for the business. Not for your team. For you.
With love and tenacity,
Lisa
Ready to go deeper?
The four shifts I shared above didn’t come to me all at once. They came through some of the hardest, most clarifying moments of my life, moments I call wake-up calls.
My dad’s death. The years I ran on empty. The retreat in the mountains that finally cracked something open in me. Each of these pivot points taught me something I could not have learned any other way. And I wrote all of it down, for you.
Wake Up Calls is the book I wish I had when I was figuring this out on my own. It is honest. It is practical. And it is written straight from my heart to yours, for every woman in this profession who is ready to stop surviving and start leading with her whole self.
Get your copy of Wake Up Calls and begin the journey.
You have waited long enough.
