Work-Life Balance: Our Land Planning and Recreation Team
Work-life balance looks a little different for everyone. One of the unique aspects of McGill’s land planning and recreation team is that their interests outside of work typically overlap with their projects at work.
Enjoying the Work
Sitting down with a few members of the land planning team to talk about work-life balance, the overarching theme was that work is most effective when it is enjoyed. There is a saying, “do what you love and you will never work a day in your life,” and with the land planning team, that rings true. Balance comes from integration of work life and personal life. If someone is siloed in either, just work or just personal, it is harder to exist in the other.
In the modern work culture, quality of life is what draws people to a company. Work-life balance is more easily achieved when the employee enjoys the work and the people they work with. Best case scenario, work should contribute to a person’s overall sense of wellbeing. Team camaraderie is a major strength of the land planning team. Before and after most meetings, the team members ask about each other’s families, vacations, and hobbies, and there is genuine care that exists between the people sitting around the table or at computers in different cities.
Always Seeking Inspiration
One member of the land planning team talked about how even when he’s not at work, he’s thinking about work—but not in the way you might imagine. For members of our land planning team, they are always seeking inspiration and new ideas for designing parks.
Sometimes, the best land planning work happens in the evening, when a team member is hanging out at a park and notices that many users are flocking to one piece of equipment or that a larger shade structure attracts people to come for a picnic. This speaks to the work-life balance that exists on our land planning team: the team members enjoy what they do, so exploration exists far beyond the walls of an office building.
Going on Adventures
Another key aspect of work-life balance is the ability to take time off. One way that McGill supports employees is by allowing paid time off to be whatever it needs to be. All employees can use their time to recharge and go on adventures; members of the land planning and recreation team typically choose to go on an adventure. Below are ways that a few of our land planning and recreation team members choose to use their time off—no surprise, they all involve recreational activities.
Nate, a project manager on the team, enjoys attending his kid’s baseball tournaments, and sometimes they take place at a field McGill has worked on.
Tyson, a planner on the team, likes to spend his free time on the water with a fishing pole in hand. While the land planning team does not work with water, our water / wastewater and water resources team do!
Kurtis, a park planner on the team, seeks out details. He loves visiting a new park or trail, and he naturally takes inventory of what he likes and dislikes. He finds joy in seeing how a park inspires and creates community.
Learn More
Parks and recreation has a huge impact on communities, and our team is happy to be involved with all the positive improvements. To learn more about our parks and recreation team, look at our website. If you have a project that you think we would be a good fit for, please contact the land planning and recreation practice area leader, Mike Norris, at mike.norris@mcgillassociates.com.
