Work-life balance is typically seen as the amount of time you spend doing your job versus the amount of time you spend doing what’s important to you outside of work. When work demands more of your time or attention, you’ll have less time to handle your other responsibilities or passions.
Many people want to achieve a greater balance between their work life and their personal life – but this balance can be difficult to achieve. Sometimes a demanding job means more money to support a family. Sometimes a job contributes to deteriorating your mental health, which then leaves you drained in personal relationships.
Work-life integration—or the synergistic blending of our personal and professional responsibilities—has become an increasingly popular concept. Work is simply one aspect of our lives that needs to be considered alongside our home and family lives, our community, and our personal well-being.
Why is work-life balance important? Improving your work-life balance can improve your overall well-being, including your physical, emotional, and mental health. Studies have found that working long hours can lead to serious health issues such as impaired sleep, depression, substance abuse, diabetes, impaired memory, and heart disease. Unfortunately, as these conditions arise they can exacerbate our work-life issues, leading to burnout and other negative repercussions.
5 Ways to Improve Your Work-Life Balance
Women, in particular, can commonly struggle with achieving work-life balance, especially among business leaders and entrepreneurs. Leaders of the 2024 Top Woman-Owned Businesses in Transportation, named by Redefining the Road magazine, share their advice in their quest for a balanced life:
1. Pause and evaluate.
Take the time to understand how the various parts of your life are impacting one another. Pause and consider your current work-life situation. Some questions you might reflect on include: Am I spending enough quality time doing what I really want? Am I committing enough time and energy to people or things that are meaningful to me? Do I still feel aligned with my professional or personal goals? Where do I feel the most stuck? How am I balancing all the roles in which I live?
According to Angela Eliacostas, President and Founder of AGT Global Logistics, a full-service third-party logistics company based in Westmont, IL, achieving work-life balance is challenging but with dedication and strategic planning it’s entirely possible. “I find resilience, integrity and hard work are essential to success,” she says. “Balancing these responsibilities with the roles of mother, grandmother, daughter, sister and wife add further challenges, but they are worth it.”
Eliacostas reflects on her life experience in multiple roles and how she manages each role: “Leading a company requires strategic vision and tough decision-making. Balancing work with the responsibilities of motherhood and grandmotherhood means being present for significant moments. This can mean late-night check-ins or attending school events between meetings. And when it comes to being a spouse, maintaining a strong partnership requires time and effort. Prioritize time for your spouse to ensure that your relationship remains a source of strength.”
2. Assess your priorities.
Some questions to ask yourself: What really matters to me and am I doing enough of it? Where can I make compromises? Where have I been making too many compromises? What can I do to ensure I am devoting enough time to my goals and relationships? “With my company’s employment being 90% women, we know how imperative it is to provide a calm and comfortable work area,” says Barb Bakos, President of Powersource Transportation. Her company also prioritizes health and well-being.
“Women’s jobs are never done after they leave these doors. Most employees have stand-up desks, ball chairs for posture and even some walking treadmills that fit under their desks. We promote healthy eating through our employee luncheons and provide a full gym to use. Promoting a healthy positive lifestyle reduces stress in the workforce and at home.”
3. Manage your time.
Based upon your priorities, it’s important to figure out how to better manage your time that are aligned with those priorities. Review how you currently spend your time and look for ways to adjust your schedule where possible. You can “block” your time as a way to focus on one area at a time or use a matrix system to establish your priorities when new tasks pop up unexpectedly. Look for ways to manage your time to boost productivity and well-being.
4. Establish boundaries.
Establishing boundaries is a crucial part of time management. Then, communicating those boundaries is equally important. If you can no longer respond to emails promptly after hours because you’re with your family, your team will need to know. Work boundaries fall into one of three categories—physical, emotional, or time. Start by setting small boundaries and expand from there. Learn more about how to set better boundaries at work – and even outside of work.
For example, Sherri Garner Brumbaugh, President and CEO of Garner Trucking (a family-owned transportation, warehousing and third-party services company), says she makes it a point to not overcommit to outside organizations: “My priorities are faith, family and friends, and my business and employees. When I’m over-committed, I don’t do any of these things well so I focus on staying organized. I prioritize my ‘to-do’ list and check things off as I get tasks completed.”
However, while establishing boundaries is important, in the transportation industry that’s not always a rule you can follow 100% of the time, admits Ashley Wiederhoeft, Assistant Vice President of Partners Funding and Great Plains Transportation Services.
“In today’s world, where technology blurs the lines between office and home, achieving work/life balance is a growing challenge,” she says. “My commitment to a strong work ethic is unwavering, especially in the trucking industry where the concept of a 9-5 schedule is non-existent. This is a value I instill in my son by having him at work at times and seeing me work during nontraditional hours, which are the same values my mother instilled in me in this same business. I’m grateful for my husband and son who understand this industry and the need to be accessible, even when we’re enjoying our time together.”
Wiederhoeft’s associate Sherri DeJong, Vice President, agrees: “My passion for years has been helping trucking companies big and small succeed and seeing my staff succeed. At times, these passions are all consuming and finding work/life balance is hard. I learned early on in my career to include my kids, so they would know and understand at some point everything is hauled on a truck and trucking families sacrifice so much. Surrounding myself with awesome support staff and setting boundaries on personal time also helps.”
5. Reflect, refine, repeat.
Whatever actions you decide are needed to create a good work-life balance, though, you should be conscious of the fact that you will likely need to continue to refine it over time. Big life changes can take time, so reflecting on your approach and refining it periodically will likely be integral parts of the process.
“Your best work can only be accomplished with balance,” says Camilla Moore Kirsch, CEO of Kirsch Transportation Services, a woman-owned logistics company based in Omaha, NE. “Be intentional and take time to ensure you are fueling yourself with healthy options, be well-rested, and remain in a positive state of mind. Schedule time on your calendar each day to work out, meditate, take a walk, or have coffee with a friend.” She also encourages women to seek out mentors who may have struggled with their own work-life balance and can offer practical tips.
“Work-life balance is achieved by namely understanding what ‘acceptance’ means,” concludes Joyce Brenny, President and CEO of Brenny Transportation, a Minnesota-based transportation solutions company. “Acceptance of purpose, acceptance that everyone is on their own journey and you cannot control that. Acceptance that you must have faith in a higher power and lastly, acceptance that everything good or stressful is presented to provide you with the experience to live out your purpose of serving others! Breath, accept, now go kick some trucking butt!”
Wnbaz Names 2024 Top Woman-Owned Businesses in Transportation
Congratulations to the 2024 Top Woman-Owned Businesses in Transportation! These powerhouse women and their flourishing organizations demonstrate financial stability and growth, innovation, and a fierce entrepreneurial spirit. Read More
A version of this article is featured in Edition 2 of 2024 in our official magazine, Redefining The Road. Download the latest edition here.
Like this kind of content?
As a member of the Wnbaz, stay on top of emerging trends and business issues impacting transportation and logistics; learn the importance of gender diversity in the workplace and the need for more women drivers; and see best practices in encouraging the employment of women in the trucking industry. Join today! Learn More
According to Angela Eliacostas, President and Founder of AGT Global Logistics, a full-service third-party logistics company based in Westmont, IL, achieving work-life balance is challenging but with dedication and strategic planning it’s entirely possible. “I find resilience, integrity and hard work are essential to success,” she says. “Balancing these responsibilities with the roles of mother, grandmother, daughter, sister and wife add further challenges, but they are worth it.”
Some questions to ask yourself: What really matters to me and am I doing enough of it? Where can I make compromises? Where have I been making too many compromises? What can I do to ensure I am devoting enough time to my goals and relationships? “With my company’s employment being 90% women, we know how imperative it is to provide a calm and comfortable work area,” says Barb Bakos, President of Powersource Transportation. Her company also prioritizes health and well-being. 
For example, Sherri Garner Brumbaugh, President and CEO of Garner Trucking (a family-owned transportation, warehousing and third-party services company), says she makes it a point to not overcommit to outside organizations: “My priorities are faith, family and friends, and my business and employees. When I’m over-committed, I don’t do any of these things well so I focus on staying organized. I prioritize my ‘to-do’ list and check things off as I get tasks completed.”
However, while establishing boundaries is important, in the transportation industry that’s not always a rule you can follow 100% of the time, admits Ashley Wiederhoeft, Assistant Vice President of Partners Funding and Great Plains Transportation Services.
Wiederhoeft’s associate Sherri DeJong, Vice President, agrees: “My passion for years has been helping trucking companies big and small succeed and seeing my staff succeed. At times, these passions are all consuming and finding work/life balance is hard. I learned early on in my career to include my kids, so they would know and understand at some point everything is hauled on a truck and trucking families sacrifice so much. Surrounding myself with awesome support staff and setting boundaries on personal time also helps.”
“Your best work can only be accomplished with balance,” says Camilla Moore Kirsch, CEO of Kirsch Transportation Services, a woman-owned logistics company based in Omaha, NE. “Be intentional and take time to ensure you are fueling yourself with healthy options, be well-rested, and remain in a positive state of mind. Schedule time on your calendar each day to work out, meditate, take a walk, or have coffee with a friend.” She also encourages women to seek out mentors who may have struggled with their own work-life balance and can offer practical tips. 
“Work-life balance is achieved by namely understanding what ‘acceptance’ means,” concludes Joyce Brenny, President and CEO of Brenny Transportation, a Minnesota-based transportation solutions company. “Acceptance of purpose, acceptance that everyone is on their own journey and you cannot control that. Acceptance that you must have faith in a higher power and lastly, acceptance that everything good or stressful is presented to provide you with the experience to live out your purpose of serving others! Breath, accept, now go kick some trucking butt!” 
