"Work to Live"

Now that we have learned some of Prague’s history, we move to present day. On Monday we visited the public television station CT 24, the graphic design company Studio Najbrt, the American Center of the United States Embassy to learn about Czech companies, and the Romani non-profit organization Romea. Tuesday we went to Google to learn about how international businesses function in the CR.

One of the big things that stuck out for me across all of the companies was the balance between work and lifestyle. In the United States, I often feel that we have a culture that supports the idea of “living to work.” Professions that are highly regarded, including doctors and lawyers, often involve huge lifestyle sacrifices (e.g. time spent with family and friends). Even beyond these professions, we are taught in the United States from a very young age that you avoid taking sick or personal days. As a society, we stress productivity and profitability over other values. Our maternity leave is short, our vacations are few, our resistance to move away from family for work is low, and our children are often raised by au pairs, babysitters, or themselves (latchkey kids). These sacrifices are seen as very normal in our society, but the Czechs (and most Europeans) seem to have more of a laid back “work to live” mentality. I think the best solution is balance. I know that I want to be able to have a family while also doing the work that I love.

Through these tours, I also learned that the Czechs seem to be less materialistic. At Studio Najbrt, we asked if they had any intentions of expanding or becoming part of a larger conglomerate, but they said that their work and their integrity was more important to them than money. I feel like this sentiment is largely lost in America. Many people choose a career that will let them make the most money. Just look at the Wall Street Crisis of the early 2000s: people in the financial industry were so greedy that they stopped looking at the integrity of their loans. I know for me, that I want a job where I’m helping people and I’m passionate about what I’m doing.

While none of the companies we visited do the work I'm ultimately interested in (except Google, but I'm more interested in the design side of it), I still was able to take away some insights about myself. For example, I know that I want to work in an environment that is collaborative, but also empowering. I thought the best example of this was Studio Najbrt. They explained that they have a few people work together on one project, but within the group, the coworkers are able to take on individual tasks. I liked the openness of their office (and Google's) and how they maintained a more playful, comfortable environment, while not sacrificing productivity.


Another issue I am currently considering is if I want to work in a big company or a smaller start-up. What I like about bigger companies is that you have more of an opportunity to travel internationally or domestically, which is something I'm really interested in. On the other hand, bigger companies tend to have a more corporate culture. I do not want to be just another number in the scheme of a large corporation. At a smaller start-up, I could have more of an opportunity to bounce around departments and work on all kinds of projects. Google is unique in the sense that it seems to achieve both by having smaller teams spread throughout a large entity. At the Czech Google, they emphasized how they work in conjunction with the other arms of Google throughout Europe.

Overall, I am glad that I had the opportunity to visit these different businesses and learn more about the Czech work culture and about what I want to ultimately pursue.