Crunch Fitness CEO Says Work-Life Balance Is Fake & Only 'For Somebody Who's Not Fully Committed'
Don't you kind of need work-life balance to be able to go to the gym in the first place?
Yuri_Arcurs | Getty Images Signature | Canva Pro "Work-life balance" has been a buzzphrase for so long that it's nearly the default perspective about work these days, at least in theory, if not in practice.
But a resurfaced interview with one CEO shows that there are still plenty of business leaders who haven't at all cottoned onto the idea of work-life balance — even those whose very businesses depend on it.
Crunch Fitness's CEO says the concept of work-life balance is fake.
Jim Rowley is a very accomplished guy. After distinguished service in the United States Marine Corps, he went on to a 30-year career in the fitness industry that has culminated in his tenure as CEO of the upscale gym chain Crunch — and he's done it all without earning a college degree.
It seems that the key to his success is plain and simple hard work — but, like, REALLY hard work. Rowley told Fortune that he believes all the modern trends in the working world are "illusions," including the concept of work-life balance. Rowley regularly works nights and weekends, doesn't believe in "life hacks" or streamlining processes and perhaps most notably of all, seems to think less of those who do.
The CEO said workers who prioritize work-life balance are 'not fully committed.'
If Rowley weren't a CEO himself, he'd be a CEO's dream worker. His comments suggest he basically doesn't believe in prioritizing anything above work. He told Fortune that he wakes up at 6:30 am, and after "[taking] time to be somewhat reflective for the first minute or so," he's in his email inbox by 7. He typically finishes around 9:00 p.m., though he does indulge in a break each day at about 6:00 until dinner time.
Why such a breakneck pace? "I don’t think there’s such a thing as work-life balance," he told Fortune — unless you're not actually serious about your career, that is. "I think work-life balance is for somebody who’s not fully committed," he went on to say.
Rowley said it all depends on what your motivation in life is, and he believes that being purpose- and goal-driven is incompatible with work-life balance. "You’re gonna find an imbalance in pursuit of that," he told Fortune. "Nobody ever had a perfect balance in pursuit of something great. You’re either all in, or you’re somewhat in, or you’re not in at all."
Americans work more than most other countries and have higher rates of burnout to go with it.
"I live by this motto: No one is coming. It’s up to you," Rowley went on to say, in reference to the goals we have in life. "Do you have the drive and the determination and the discipline to get what you want? And if you’re willing to make those sacrifices, there’s going to be an imbalance in your life."
There's certainly some truth to that. Americans work far longer hours than most comparable countries, and we have some of the worst work- and stress-related health outcomes to go with them, including staggering rates of burnout.
Combine that with the financial problems most Americans are living with, and it really doesn't seem like the American all-or-nothing work ethic that Rowley subscribes to is paying off.
And as several people online pointed out, it also doesn't really make much sense given Rowley's business. As one Redditor put it, "interesting that a guy who's against work-life balance is running a business that requires people to have a work-life balance."
It's essentially part of Rowley's job to work out, but for everyone else — aside from the models and celebrities essentially paid to be hot for a living — it's something we need *ahem* work-life balance in order to do. And if we all took Rowley's attitude toward work-life balance, he'd be out of business pretty quickly.
Rowley's success is admirable, and there's some sage advice about committing to goals embedded in his philosophy. But the idea that the only path to success is believing having anything else going on in your life besides work is an "illusion" for people who lack commitment? Well, let's just all thank our lucky stars we don't have to work for Rowley and leave it at that.
John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.