Where Do You Draw the Line Between What’s Good for You and What’s Good for Your Job?
- Victoria Scott
- May 13
- 2 min read
Updated: May 14
One of my clients recently asked me a powerful question:
“Where do you draw the line between what’s good for you and what’s good for your company?”
He’d been making intentional choices to improve his work-life balance. One of his new work-life boundaries? Logging off by 5pm. That single shift was already improving his satisfaction and lowering his stress.
But then, something changed.
His organization restructured priorities and assigned him to a new project with unfamiliar goals. The night before our session, he stayed up late reading documentation to get up to speed. Not only did he miss his 5pm logout – he also missed out on sleep.
He was worried he was slipping back into old habits. He wanted to be a team player, but he also didn’t want to lose the progress he’d made. That’s when he asked the question.
And here’s my take on it:
The line shouldn’t be a tradeoff. It should be both.
What’s good for you can be what’s good for your company. When you’re well-rested, clear-headed, and emotionally grounded, you make better decisions, work more productively, and build better relationships.
We unpacked his choice together:
❓ Did staying up late benefit the company? Not really. He was too tired to absorb the material, and the reading didn’t actually align with his immediate project goals.
❓ Did it benefit him? Definitely not. He showed up the next day tired, cranky, and scattered.
❓ Did it benefit anyone at all? No. He was less focused, less effective, and more stressed.
In hindsight, the choice felt obvious. But when we’re in it – navigating change, uncertainty, or a new challenge – it’s easy to fall into the trap of overcompensating or trying to prove ourselves.
None of this is unusual – it may even sound familiar. The stress of change can trigger urgency, self-doubt, and overcompensation – especially when you care deeply about doing your work well. Stress narrows your focus and makes it harder to see your full range of options.
Even good change is stressful. And in this case, it stirred up disappointment – about his old projects and the goals he was no longer going to get to work on – and fear that maybe this change meant something about him. (Yes, imposter syndrome showed up right on schedule.)
Staying up late was a way to take back some control in a situation that felt very outside of his control. And together, we were able to take a better look at what was within his control and make better choices.
This is exactly where coaching comes in.
When your brain says, “Just do more,” coaching helps you slow down, look at the bigger picture, and choose the actions that actually serve you and your goals – without sacrificing your well-being to prove yourself.
Ready to navigate tricky work challenges with more confidence? Let’s talk.
Comments