--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Framing the issue as \"work-life balance\"…" description: "\"“Framing the issue as \"work-life balance\" – as if the two were diametrically opposed – practically ensures work will lose out. Who would ever choose wo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/sheryl-sandberg-439_balance_framing-the-issue-as-work-life-balance-a_1511207.png" --- # Framing the issue as "work-life balance" – as if the two… ![“Framing the issue as "work-life balance" – as if the two were diametrically opposed – practically ensures work will lose out. Who would ever choose work over life? (p.24)” quote by Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/sheryl-sandberg-439_balance_framing-the-issue-as-work-life-balance-a_1511207.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/sheryl-sandberg-439_balance_framing-the-issue-as-work-life-balance-a_1511207.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/sheryl-sandberg-439_balance_framing-the-issue-as-work-life-balance-a_1511207.png) > ““Framing the issue as "work-life balance" – as if the two were diametrically opposed – practically ensures work will lose out. Who would ever choose work over life? (p.24)”” [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Labeling work and life as opposing forces creates a false dichotomy, leading to work being undervalued. **In simple terms:** Work‑life balance is a false binary. Key Takeaway Integrate work and life meaningfully. Themes gender career balance culture policy Mood thoughtful empowering Type practical inspirational When to use this quote - career planning - HR policy design - personal time management Key Concepts feminist theory organizational behavior workplace culture Questions to Reflect On - How can organizations support integrated lives? - What personal boundaries help maintain health? A Different Perspective Balancing may still require trade‑offs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Work Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-life/) [Work-Life Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-life-balance-2/) ## Related quotes > [Framing the issue of work-life balance - as if the two were dramatically opposed - practically ensures work will lose out. Who would ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/framing-the-issue-of-work-life-balance-as-if-the-two-were/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I think all of us are multitasking a little more today than we used to or than we would like to. And I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irene-rosenfeld/i-think-all-of-us-are-multitasking-a-little-more-today-than-we-used/) [Irene Rosenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irene-rosenfeld/) > [There is no such thing as work-life balance. There is work, there is life, and there is no balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/there-is-no-such-thing-as-work-life-balance-there-is-work-there-is/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [So there's no such thing as work-life balance. There's work, and there's life, and there's no balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/so-there-s-no-such-thing-as-work-life-balance-there-s-work-and-there/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I walk out of this office every day at 5:30 so I'm home for dinner with my kids at 6, and interestingly, I've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/i-walk-out-of-this-office-every-day-at-5-30-so-i-m-home-for-dinner/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I don't know how to choose work that illuminates what my life is about. I don't know what my life is about and don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-lumet/i-don-t-know-how-to-choose-work-that-illuminates-what-my-life-is-2/) [Sidney Lumet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-lumet/) > [The phrase "work-life balance" tells us that people think that work is the opposite of life. We should be talking about life-life balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dixon/the-phrase-work-life-balance-tells-us-that-people-think-that-work-is/) [Patrick Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dixon/) > [Startups are not the best choice for work-life balance, and that's sort of just the sad reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-altman/startups-are-not-the-best-choice-for-work-life-balance-and-that-s/) [Sam Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-altman/) > [Work-life balance is not just a buzzy, self-help term that real business people laugh at. You need it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-ruhle/work-life-balance-is-not-just-a-buzzy-self-help-term-that-real/) [Stephanie Ruhle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-ruhle/) > [“Work-life balance is not something we can find. That’s because we use words as if this balance were a noun when in reality it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-hallis/work-life-balance-is-not-something-we-can-find-that-s-because-we-use/) [Tina Hallis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-hallis/) > [“The concept of “work-life balance” is a fleeting idea for a Bombshell. Instead, a focus on work-life success—where her time and energy shifts based…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-hurdle/the-concept-of-work-life-balance-is-a-fleeting-idea-for-a-bombshell/) [Amber Hurdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-hurdle/) > [I don't get a work-life balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-conte/i-don-t-get-a-work-life-balance/) [Jack Conte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-conte/) > [“There is no work-life balance. We have one life. What's most important is that you be awake for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-marturano/there-is-no-work-life-balance-we-have-one-life-what-s-most-important/) Janice Marturano > [Wrestling with work-life balance is a luxury when working to support a family is a necessity rather than a choice. I think that focus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willow-bay/wrestling-with-work-life-balance-is-a-luxury-when-working-to-support/) [Willow Bay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willow-bay/) > [To have someone who never makes a mistake, never finds her personal life in disarray, never worries about work-life balance? I think that would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/to-have-someone-who-never-makes-a-mistake-never-finds-her-personal/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) ## More by Sheryl Sandberg > [“Still, my argument was that if she was going to work for the next 30 years, what difference does "going back" 4 years really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/still-my-argument-was-that-if-she-was-going-to-work-for-the-next-30/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“Reverend Veronica Goines sums this up as, “Peace is joy at rest, and joy is peace on its feet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/reverend-veronica-goines-sums-this-up-as-peace-is-joy-at-rest-and-joy/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [ “\[Eric Schmidt\] explained that only one criterion that mattered when picking a job- fat growth. When companies grow quickly, there are more things to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/eric-schmidt-explained-that-only-one-criterion-that-mattered-when/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [When I went to college, as much as my parents emphasized academic achievement, they emphasized marriage even more. They told me that the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/when-i-went-to-college-as-much-as-my-parents-emphasized-academic/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Go to a playground: Little girls get called 'bossy' all the time, a word that's almost never used for boys. And that leads directly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/go-to-a-playground-little-girls-get-called-bossy-all-the-time-a-word/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“One of my favorite quotes comes from author Alice Walker, who observed, “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/one-of-my-favorite-quotes-comes-from-author-alice-walker-who-observed/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Aggressive and hard-charging women violate unwritten rules about acceptable social conduct. Men are continually applauded for being ambitious and powerful and successful, but women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/aggressive-and-hard-charging-women-violate-unwritten-rules-about/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“When I wrote Lean In, some people argued that I did not spend enough time writing about the difficulties women face when they don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/when-i-wrote-lean-in-some-people-argued-that-i-did-not-spend-enough/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“Survivor guilt is a thief of joy—yet another secondary loss from death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/survivor-guilt-is-a-thief-of-joy-yet-another-secondary-loss-from-death/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I am a bigger-picture manager because I've lived through something that's a big picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/i-am-a-bigger-picture-manager-because-i-ve-lived-through-something/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Presenting leadership as a list of carefully defined qualities (like strategic, analytical, and performance-ori ented) no longer holds. Instead, true leadership stems from individuality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/presenting-leadership-as-a-list-of-carefully-defined-qualities-like/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [So there's no such thing as work-life balance. There's work, and there's life, and there's no balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/so-there-s-no-such-thing-as-work-life-balance-there-s-work-and-there/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Men can comfortably claim credit for what they do as long as they don't veer into arrogance. For women, taking credit comes at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/men-can-comfortably-claim-credit-for-what-they-do-as-long-as-they-don/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“As Helen Keller put it, “When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/as-helen-keller-put-it-when-one-door-of-happiness-closes-another/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“Forty percent of employed mothers lack sick days and vacation leave, and about 50 percent of employed mothers are unable to take time off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/forty-percent-of-employed-mothers-lack-sick-days-and-vacation-leave/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) [Explore all 557 Sheryl Sandberg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) ## More Balance quotes > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [she got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/she-got-a-reputation-for-an-easy-smile-and-a-sharp-tongue-and-using/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Life's unfairness is not irrevocable; we can help balance the scales for others, if not always for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/life-s-unfairness-is-not-irrevocable-we-can-help-balance-the-scales/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [“We don't need to strive towards balance, we rather need to work on the obstacles that are preventing the natural flow of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-alebraheem/we-don-t-need-to-strive-towards-balance-we-rather-need-to-work-on-the/) [A.A. Alebraheem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-alebraheem/) > [I think that kind of balance comes with the process of growing together as a band, the Little Dragon. We love to write, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukimi-nagano/i-think-that-kind-of-balance-comes-with-the-process-of-growing/) [Yukimi Nagano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukimi-nagano/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [It's my intention to make something stand outside the realm of album art, but it also feels comfortable to me to be in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer-baizley/it-s-my-intention-to-make-something-stand-outside-the-realm-of-album/) [John Dyer Baizley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer-baizley/) > [Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/once-you-ve-gotten-your-money-in-balance-you-know-how-much-you-have/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I never understood how much running changes your life. I'm now obsessed. When not trying to beat my personal best, I'm talking to other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadiq-khan/i-never-understood-how-much-running-changes-your-life-i-m-now/) [Sadiq Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadiq-khan/) > [Whatever needed to be done, I need to know how to do it just as well as my wife. You know, for us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-isbell/whatever-needed-to-be-done-i-need-to-know-how-to-do-it-just-as-well/) [Jason Isbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-isbell/) > [I don't think my parents would have let me go straight into acting full time when I was 12. I do like to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-don-t-think-my-parents-would-have-let-me-go-straight-into-acting/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [When it comes down to music, I have no balance. I am 100 percent. It is like full throttle. Five hundred miles an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/when-it-comes-down-to-music-i-have-no-balance-i-am-100-percent-it-is/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) [Browse all 5,166 Balance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Framing the issue as \"work-life balance\" – as if the two were diametrically opposed – practically ensures work will lose out. Who would ever choose work over life? 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