The choice between having a career or making time for love is an extremely personal and individual decision. There are many factors which can affect your choice, and there are many people who have discovered how to achieve a healthy work life balance that allows them to have both.

　　Careers and love fulfill us in different but important ways. Having a solid career gives us a sense of accomplishment and self worth, aside from the practicalities of paying the bills. Many people develop their entire identity based upon what they do, elevating their career to a level of great importance in their lives.

　　Then there are those who measure their success in terms of having a pleasant and rewarding home life. They develop their identities based upon the accomplishments of their children, and derive their self worth through the love and support of a spouse.

　　So what happens if you cannot or do not wish to make room in your life for both? While the happiest and healthiest people have managed to develop a work life balance that allows for both, it may not be for everyone. Consider these factors when pondering which is more important for you.

　　1. Your career may be more important when you are young Many people these days focus on careers first and family later. The reasoning is that, while you are young and unencumbered, you have the time and energy to fully devote yourself to a career. If you have lofty career ambitions while you are young, it may indeed be the time to start making progress towards those goals.

　　Once you get married and begin to build a family, much of your time and energy -by necessity -becomes devoted to your family. This is as it should be. You should not start a family unless you are willing to devote time and attention to your loved ones.

　　Many people who accomplish great success in their careers when they are young, and establish themselves in a secure position, are then more willing and comfortable later on to devote themselves to family. By the time they do settle down, they are more prepared to handle the responsibility.

　　2. Falling in love can be better when you are older

　　More and more people these days are choosing to wait when it comes to making decisions about family. It is not unusual for people to delay marriage until their late 30's or even their early 40's. Delaying family decisions allows you to be better prepared for those obligations, and creates a better Ukelibood5 that you are in touch with your most important goals and values. You have had the opportunity to completely grow up, greatly reducing the chances of feeling like you are "missing out." You have had the chance to purge the foolishness of youth from your system and are now confident with the wisdom of maturity.

　　3. Choosing Both

　　If you can find a work life balance that allows you to experience the joys of love and maintain a successful career, you will have a truly happy and rewarding life. A loving family at Home can help you celebrate all of your successes, and bolster your confidence through your failures. There are many people out there reaping the tremendous rewards that come with including love and work in their lives, and finding the balance that allows for both.

　　A life that only has room for a career, or that includes a consuming love that stifles your personal development, is likely not a lifestyle that is healthy or fulfilling Our personal needs and feelings of self worth need to be met, which is normally gained from having a good career. Our hearts and souls need to be nourished , and we need companionship to support us through life, which normally are derived from loving relationships.

　　The truly healthy and well balanced person will recognize the benefits of having both. He or she will take steps to achieve the work life balance necessary to assure the continuation of career growth while nurturing and maintaining the health of personal relationships. It is only when we can maintain this delicate balance that we are living life to its greatest potential.

　　事業(yè)與愛情之間的選擇是一個非常私人的決定。有許多因素能夠影響你的選擇，許多人已經(jīng)發(fā)現(xiàn)了怎樣獲得健康的事業(yè)與生活的平衡點，從而可以魚與熊掌兼得。

　　事業(yè)與愛情以截然不同但都非常重要的方式給我們帶來滿足感。擁有穩(wěn)定的工作，除了能夠讓我們支付各種賬單的實用性之外，還可以給我們以成就感，并能夠充分實現(xiàn)自我價值。許多人正是在事業(yè)的基礎上確立了自己的身份和地位，并將他們的職業(yè)提升到了生活中非常重要的高度。

　　然而，也有人是以擁有愉悅、滿意的家庭生活為標準來衡量自己的成功的。他們將自己的身份和地位建立在孩子的成就基礎之上，他們的自我價值是通過配偶的愛和支持體現(xiàn)出來的。

　　如果你在生活中無法或沒有希望兼顧這兩方面，那會怎么樣呢?雖然最幸福和最健康的人已經(jīng)設法擁有了事業(yè)與生活的平衡，做到了兩者兼得，但并不是每個人都能如此。在權(quán)衡哪方面對你更重要的時候，不妨考慮一下這些因素。

　　1.在你年輕的時候，事業(yè)可能更重要

　　現(xiàn)在有許多人都是先考慮事業(yè)，后考慮家庭。理由是，在年輕力壯、毫無牽掛的時候，你的時間和精力可以全部投入到事業(yè)中去。如果你在年輕的時候擁有遠大的事業(yè)心，那的確應該抓住時機，向著那些目標前進。

　　一旦你結(jié)了婚，開始組建家庭，你的許多時間和精力就必然要投入到家庭之中。這是理所應當?shù)?。如果你不想將時間和注意力投入到你所愛的人身上，你就不應該成家。

　　許多人在年輕的時候就已經(jīng)在事業(yè)上功成名就，在建立了穩(wěn)固的地位之后，會更愿意專注于舒適的家庭生活。等到定下心來成家立室的時候，他們已經(jīng)充分做好了承擔家庭職責的準備。

　　2.成熟穩(wěn)重時戀愛會更好

　　如今有越來越多的人在提到成家的決定時都選擇等待。許多人會等到30多歲甚至40出頭的時候才結(jié)婚，這已經(jīng)不是什么奇怪的事了。晚成家的決定可以使你對那些家庭義務進行更充分的準備，并使你更有可能實現(xiàn)自己的人生目標和價值。你擁有完全的成長機會，可以最大限度地減少你覺得有所遺憾的可能性。此外，你還有機會蛻去青春的無知，充滿自信地展現(xiàn)你的成熟和睿智。

　　3.兩者皆選

　　如果你能夠找到事業(yè)與生活的平衡點，能夠在享受愛情的政愉同時還保持事業(yè)的成功，那么，你就會擁有真正幸福充實的人生。相親相愛的家人，不僅能夠在成 功時為你慶祝，還能在失敗時幫你重拾信心。許多人已經(jīng)找到了兩者的平衡點，擁有了事業(yè)與愛情雙豐收的美好人生。

　　如果一個人的生活中只有事業(yè)，或者只有妨礙個人發(fā)展的強烈的愛情，那樣的生活方式就不能算是健康的或成功的。我們個人的需求和自我價值感需要得到滿足，而且常常都是通過擁有一個好工作來實現(xiàn)的;但我們的心靈也需要得到滋養(yǎng)，我們需要有伴侶與我們相互扶持度過漫長一生，而這常常是通過愛情來獲得的。

　　真正健康、正常的人會認可同時擁有這兩者的好處。他必定會設法取得事業(yè)與生活的平衡，確保在保持良好的人際關(guān)系的同時，能夠繼續(xù)事業(yè)的良好發(fā)展。只有當我們能夠維持這種微妙的平衡時，我們才有可能擁有最完美幸福的生活。