Skills Help Couples Balance Work and Family
Summary
President Obama spoke out this week on the challenges couples face balancing work and family life. While workers may not always be able to influence company policies, research shows that improving communication skills, emotional understanding, and the ability to work through typical marital conflicts helps couples boost the bottom line at home and for their employers.
Not long ago, Barack and Michelle Obama were both working full-time outside the home while raising two young daughters. The President spoke this week about the struggles millions of Americans face balancing work and family life.
“While we have made great strides as a nation to adopt more flexible policies in the workplace, there’s more we can do. Millions of Americans continue to struggle day-in and day-out to balance work and family life – to juggle their job responsibilities with caring for a child, an elderly relative, or a loved one with a disability.”
The President said implementing practices like telework, paid leave, and alternative work schedules are creating greater workplace flexibility. “At the end of the day, attracting and retaining employees who are more productive and engaged through flexible workplace policies is not just good for business or for our economy – it’s good for our families and our future,” he said.
While family-friendly work practices are important, decisions made by couples themselves are key.
A recent study looked at the impact of a nine-hour evidence-based relationship skills training program on 168 participants who reported combined annual household income below $48,000. Eighty percent of participants were between the ages of 31 and 60. Ninety four percent were married.
Follow-up interviews showed significant gains six to 12 months later:
- 77% showed greater relationship cohesion and stability;
- 95% improved communication in their relationship;
- 93% improved conflict resolution;
- 88% improved physical intimacy;
- 89% improved emotional intimacy;
- 93% improved overall relationship satisfaction;
- 99% indicated they would recommend the classes to others.
The study makes a strong case for the benefits of brief skills training approaches to help workers strengthen their lives at home and better contribute at work. While workers may not always be able to influence company policies, improving communication skills, emotional understanding, and the ability to work through typical marital conflicts helps them stay on the same team, contributing to the bottom-line for their families and employers.
Additional Resources:
National Healthy Marriage Resource Center
California Healthy Marriages Coalition
Hi!
My name is Judy Lee and I found your site while researching work/life balance for a new show I’m casting. I’m working for a groundbreaking new docu series called Time Out. It’s about people who find it a challenge to maintain a healthy balance between their family and work lives. It’s a very family friendly, positive show for a new network. I have a flyer that I can send you, but I’ve also copied and pasted a written version so you can quickly scroll down and glance at it. I was wondering if you would be able to send it to your readers or just post it up on your blog. We want to hear from families in Southern California with an overworked parent and could use more time with their kids. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. Our goal is to help as many families as possible, giving them the chance to balance their work life and home life so they can create an even stronger family bond. If you know of anyone who might be interested in talking to us, please pass this along. Also, please feel free to call or email me any time for more information. Thanks again! I hope you have a great rest of the day!
Judy Lee
Casting Associate
TIMEOUT Casting
CastingTimeOut@gmail.com
818.563.4131
Life-changing new docu-series that empowers real families to rediscover what family is all about.
TIMEOUT
This groundbreaking new series is about people who find it a challenge to maintain a healthy balance between their family and work lives.
If you answer, “YES” to any of the following questions, you are not alone. We would love to speak to you and hear your story:
Is your spouse a workaholic?
Has your spouse missed major milestones in your kids lives?
Do you miss having dinner as a family?
Do your kids always complain that you or your spouse is never home or available?
Is it hard for your spouse to put the computer or cell phone down and enjoy family time?
Are you ready for your spouse to put your family life first and create the balance you need to raise a happy, healthy family?
We are looking for families who:
Live in Southern California.
Have a minimum of 2 children between the ages of 7-17.
Have a workaholic parent that needs a new perspective on life.
Families with expressive and opinionated children who have a strong reaction to their parents overwhelming responsibilities at work.
EMAIL US NOW AT:
Castingtimeout@gmail.com
Please include your name, address, occupation, contact phone numbers, email addresses, a recent photograph of you and your family, and a brief summary of how the workaholic parent has effected the family dynamic. For more information, please contact MysticArt Pictures at 818.563.4131 or visit http://www.mysticartpictures.com.