FAMILY MATTERS Sometimes working at home is a family affair.
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Sure, now get back to work BY Michael Giotis
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EAST BAY MAGAZINE | EASTBAYMAG.COM | MARCH/APRIL 2022
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PHOTO BY LEONIDAS GIOTIS
Work-Life BALANCE
ne of the ways to control work-life balance is to talk about it. I did just that with two experts, both from Berkeley's Haas Business School, one a professor and one a recent graduate, to see what these members of an elite educational institution knew about taking it easy. Dr. Homa Bahrami is an “expert on organizational flexibility and dynamic leadership” at Haas. After canceling our interview because of my son's sudden orthopedic-surgeon appointment and her canceling for her own reasons, we needed that flexibility just to meet up. I wanted to know how, over the course of the pandemic, work-life balance changed. “There are some practices that really vary depending on where you are in your life, Michael,” she said. “For example, are you young and unattached? A single individual?” Uh, who’s asking, Doc? Then I got her point. Different people at different stages in their lives face different challenges during this time. And they have different opportunities. “Some of my younger students really miss the social aspect of being in the office, going for lunch [and] going for drinks afterwards,” she said. Meanwhile, privileged parents with young children also find these times to be a big change from the lives they once
