Work and Life A RECIPE FOR BALANCE
LIVING FOR THE WEEKEND Bobby Carter began a recent evening on stage with “Charlie,” the
Nancy Andrews’
recipe for a balanced life includes cooking. Her husband and teenage son often hang out with her in the kitchen while she whips up dishes like beef carbonnade or spaghetti with olive oil, garlic and hot peppers. “Cooking relaxes me,” said Andrews, the dean of the School of Medicine. “It’s a good way to transition from work to home.” Andrews, who oversees nearly 2,000 faculty, said she doesn’t cook as often as she would like but makes a practice of cooking for the family every evening she is home. “I have a lot of evening dinners and meetings with faculty and other deans,” she said. “But I try to limit them to no more than three evenings a week.”
Nancy Andrews, dean of Duke’s School of Medicine, whips up beef carbonnade at home.
FINDING TIME TO FEED YOUR SOUL One glance at Richard H. Brodhead’s calendar is enough to learn that being a university president could easily take over one’s life. His job includes many events – dinners, receptions, sports events, travel, encounters with faculty, students and alumni and more, he said. “All these are energizing and fun, but they make for a calendar where nearly every minute of my week is scheduled,” he said. To create a bit of balance, Brodhead turns to his “first-line defenses: a long walk, a good book, and spending time President Richard H. Brodhead visits with family and close Bald Head Island in North Carolina in 2009. friends,” he said. He recalled with pleasure a day last October that included all of these loves. “Some close friends invited my wife Cindy and me over to see their collection of American literature. That’s my old subject, so they knew how much it would mean to me,” he said. “Then we took a long walk and sat outside eating as the evening fell. That was pretty restorative.” He believes firmly that experiences like these are the stuff from which balance is created. “The challenge of work-life balance – for me as for every Duke employee – is to give your job your best effort,” he said, “but also to protect precious time for family and the other things that feed your soul.”
Cake with her husband, Johnny and their grandsons Miles and Christopher at Disney World.
six-member Motown and beach band he has been lead vocalist with for 19 years. As the night wore on, he worked the crowd, mingling with wedding guests, crooning songs like Teddy Pendergrass’ “The Love I Lost” and Al Green’s “Love and Happiness.” “I’ve been singing all my life,” said Carter, 60, who works 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. driving patients between Duke Clinic and Duke Hospital in a large electric golf cart. “I’ve worked with great musicians like Curtis Mayfield and Betty Wright. Singing feels like my real job. I’ve done it longer than any nine-to-five job.” Although working full-time and travelling for performances nearly every weekend can be exhausting, Carter says music is invigorating. Five years ago, he took a break from the band and quickly realized it was a mistake. “I got bored, irritable and pretty hard to live with,” he said. “I was real happy when they asked me to come back.” He’s content with his schedule, working as a patient transporter by day, rehearsing music Thursday nights and performing whenever he can. “I dream of singing full-time, but maybe that’s in the future,” he said. “For now, I live for the weekends.” Bobby Carter sings in the Motown and beach band, “Charlie.”
Work-Life Resources at Duke 䡵 Duke Human Resources. Duke offers a wide range of professional development and family-friendly, health, fitness and cultural benefits to support faculty and staff. www.hr.duke.edu/benefits
䡵 Duke Integrative Medicine. Multi-day health immersions, annual membership and a broad array of clinical services, classes, workshops and trainings focused on healing and providing personalized, comprehensive support. www.dukeintegrativemedicine.org
䡵 Employee Discounts. Want to get away? Duke works with businesses to offer discounts on a range of services, products, travel and entertainment. www.hr.duke.edu/discounts
䡵 Events at Duke. Look no further than Duke’s online events calendar for activities that stimulate your mind and senses, everything from athletics and recreation to lectures and the arts, many of which are free. http://calendar.duke.edu
䡵 Duke Personal Assistance Service. Up to eight counseling sessions per concern provided at no charge to eligible Duke faculty and staff and their immediate family members. www.hr.duke.edu/pas
— By Marsha A. Green Senior writer, Office of Communication Services
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