Mr. Villain, work-life balance, and how he made me realize something important

Hi Everyone! How are you? I’m doing pretty good. It’s Sunday! Are you watching the Big Game? Who are you rooting for? Or are you just watching it for the halftime show? I’m one of those people that only watch the Super Bowl. I was into football, but it’s not as fun to watch as it used to be. I may try to start watching a sport that gets less attention, like the WNBA or rugby.

Anyway, let’s jump back into Mr. Villain’s Day Off. Surprisingly, there’s a lot we can learn from the show, especially about work-balance. I will also discuss how this show led me to make a decision regarding my career. Let’s get into it.

What is Work-Life Balance & Why is it Important?

Work-life balance is exactly how it sounds. It is finding a balance between your work life and your personal life. “Work-life balance is the process of maintaining separation and success in your personal endeavors and at work”¹. Those personal endeavors could include caring for your family, maintaining a hobby, or simply catching up on your sleep. Not to make this an age thing, but older generations of workplace leaders HATE this phrase. I know this from personal experience. They believe it is a sign of weakness to take time for self-care. But, they wonder why their employees are stressed, disgruntled, and burned out. More importantly, they wonder why they have high turnover.

To those who do not appreciate work-life balance, I say this…working yourself to death is not the flex you think it is. Great, you can pull 100-hour work weeks. You also miss significant milestones in your family, the wonderful feeling of recharging your batteries after some rest and discovering new pastimes and hobbies. Now, this does not apply to those who are trying to survive. That’s a totally different commentary on socioeconomic disparities, wealth distribution, etc. I am not talking to you.

Mr. Villain Gets It!

Remember that Mr. Villain is an alien trying to take over the world. He wants to claim our planet for his planet. However, he takes his days off just as seriously as he takes his mission. His off time is to hyper-obsess over pandas (see my earlier post on this show), go to the convenience store, or do laundry.

In the first few episodes, he bumps into the Temu-version of a Red Power Ranger. Red Ranger wants to fight, but Mr. Villain is not on the clock and does not engage. It is a remarkable display of boundaries and work-life balance. His arch nemesis is standing right before him, and he’s like, “Not today, Junior.” Mr. Villain does not work for free.

Here is the kicker: the powers that be do not call him on his days off. Maybe they realize the pressures of world-conquering. Perhaps they understand that he’d operate more efficiently if he weren’t mentally and physically exhausted. I bet his evil corporation has a killer benefits package.

Mr. Villain and My Big Decision

Yesterday, I received some intel about a potential career opportunity. I’ve known about the opportunity and was waiting for the outcome. At first, I was going to back out of the chance for several reasons that I will not discuss.

I watched episode 4 of Mr. Villain’s Day Off yesterday. Part of this episode was about a young man burned out from his job. He goes to the convenience store and sees Mr. Villain picking up a dessert. This is Mr. Villain’s way of rewarding himself for a job well done. This further influences the young man to reward himself for his hard work.

What an inspiring message. You should reward yourself, even for just making it through the day. It’s a way of turning a negative into a positive. Based on the segment, I decided to pursue the opportunity. Instead of looking at the potential negatives, I can look at the positives, beginning with celebrating the hard work I invested to prepare myself for such an opportunity.

Wrapping It Up

Well, that’s it for Mr. Villain. I’m not a slice-of-life girl, but I am really enjoying this one. Next time, we return to Doctor Elise: The Royal Lady with the Lamp and discuss the ingenue trope. I will see you then!