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Why You Need to Make It Home for Dinner

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June 25, 2008 RSS Feed Print
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When it comes to family time in the work-life balance, one particular time may be the most important: the dinner hour.

A recent study from researchers at Brigham Young University suggests that long hours on the job cause higher work-life conflict when they regularly interrupt dinnertime.

Researchers looked at data from a large IBM survey and focused on 1,500 U.S. workers with children under 18. They found that the work-family conflict associated with working longer hours dropped significantly for women who didn't miss dinnertime. Indeed, working long hours can take a toll personally and professionally (it's called burnout), but making it home for dinner can mitigate the impact.

The takeaway: Companies may benefit if they find a way for employees to work long hours but make it home in time for dinner, according to the study.

It's one more reason—along with high gas prices—to lobby for a telecommuting day (or two).

Tags:
family,
careers

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One Father's Day, I wrote my father the list of "Things I Learned from My Dad." I worked on the list for several months. When it came time to send it, I realized something that I had not written. The greatest lesson he taught me was that he made it a priority to be home for dinner every night. Sadly, I did not take that to heart. As I reflect on lessons I have taught my own children, I think, "Dad thinks he is really important at work and is too busy for us" would be close to the mark. When I grew up I pursued a career similar to my father's profession. None of my children want anything to do with a career that I allowed to suck me away from way too much family time. That says it all.

KCH of MO 7:25PM July 10, 2008

I believe that having dinner with my family when my brothers and sisters and I were growing up made a huge difference in our lives. I think that I would have felt like my parents did not care for me as much if they had not made that effort to spend that dinner time together with us children.

Spending time reading or playing sports with my family also bring back some of my fondest memories. I wish we would have had even more of those family together times.

I don't know if a doctor who works with dying patients ever said this, but I've head that one such doctor commented once that of all his years working with dying patients, he never heard any of them ever say: "Oh, I wish I would have spent more time in the office..." The regrets are always those of not having spent enough time together.

Alex of UT 10:06PM July 09, 2008

Another reason to make it home for dinner, from Barbara Kingsolver in her recent book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: "A survey of National Merit scholars--exceptionally successful eighteen-year-olds crossing all lines of ethnicity, gender, geography, and class--turned up a common thread in their lives: the habit of sitting down to a family dinner table."

Amy WB of IL 10:03AM June 26, 2008

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