I had to smile and could not help reading that sentence again. And then again. And it made me think - would I?
We all know these moments: we do something because it is "important". Because it has to be done. Because everyone does it that way. But if you had to watch this day, this week, this month later as a film - would it be worth watching? Or would you fast-forward?
I do not have a finished answer to that. But I believe the question itself is valuable. Because it forces us to pause and be honest: am I really spending my time on what matters? Or am I just chasing what is supposedly meant to matter?
Most of us are physically present - at the dinner table, in the meeting room, on a weekend trip. But how often are we really there? How often is our attention already on the next to-do, the next call, the next problem?
And above all: when we look back on our lives one day, will we be proud of what we experienced? Or will we ask ourselves why we were not braver, took more risks, spent more time with the people who really matter to us?
What does this have to do with work?
Everything. We live in a time when work often dominates everything. Fifty-hour weeks are considered normal, constant availability is taken for granted. And anyone who says, "I have to leave on time, my daughter has her birthday today," sometimes still has to justify it.
Yet it has long been clear that this logic does not add up. Not for people. And not for companies either.
We are a member of the Erfolgsfaktor Familie network - not because it sounds good in marketing, but out of conviction. Because we believe that real compatibility between family and career is not a nice-to-have, but a necessity. For satisfied employees. For productive teams. And ultimately for successful companies.
The network was founded jointly by the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs and the business community to support companies in implementing family-friendly working models. Flexible working hours, home office options, parental leave without a career penalty, support for care responsibilities - none of these are luxury topics. They are existential. And they only work when companies take them seriously.
Because what is the point of telling ourselves that career is everything, only to realise one day that we missed the most important moments? That our children grew up while we were sitting in the office. That we never really had time for the people who matter to us.
Quality time instead of physical presence
It is not about how many hours we sit at the dinner table. It is about whether we are truly present when we are there. Whether we listen when our children tell us something. Whether we laugh when we are out with friends. Whether we live instead of merely functioning.
That does not mean work is unimportant. But it does mean we should become conscious of how we spend our time. And that we should create structures - for ourselves and for our teams - that make real life possible. Because in the end, nobody on their deathbed will say: "I wish I had spent more time at the office."
I do not have a perfect answer to all of this. No formula that makes everything easy. But I believe the question on that rear window is a good start:
If your life were a film - would you watch it?
And if you hesitate with the answer, perhaps it is time to change the script. Before the credits roll.