At the 2025 HR Indaba, speakers challenged the myth of work-life balance, calling instead for intentional rest, focus and self-leadership.
There really is no such thing as work-life balance – but there is a way to be intentional about achieving it.
This is what the audience at a panel discussion at the 2025 HR Indaba heard during a session entitled Learning to bet on yourself.
Bryan Habana, widely considered one of the best rugby players in the sport until his retirement in 2018, said that “balance is unfortunately an unattainable objective if you want to be successful”. The former Springbok co-founded HR platform Paymenow after leaving professional rugby.
Being willing to sacrifice, work hard, be disciplined, reliant, and persevere are his five non-negotiable principles because, without them, someone’s chance of success – regardless of whether they are in sports, arts, culture, politics, or business – “are very small”.
However, leadership in today’s world demands more than discipline and hard work. It requires understanding how people function best, especially in an always-connected environment.
“When you’re a co-founder of a business, where you sit in a C-suite level position, your job doesn’t stop at 5 o’clock. You continue 24 hours around the clock. But when you have employees and you get engaged properly, how do you get them fully focused at being able to be optimal between 8 and 5? Because you can’t effectively ask people that have a contract between 8 and 5 to work after 5 o’clock,” Bryan said.
The power of the pause
Being intentional about rest is just as important as being intentional about work or growth, Bryan believes. In the rush of daily life, people often “forget to breathe”, neglecting the need to pause and reset.
Bryan suggests taking just 30 seconds at different points in the day to breathe deeply and allow the body to recover. This short pause “functionally allows your body to reset its clock” and improves brain function while helping you mentally transition from one task to the next. “But we get so busy in the rat race that we sometimes neglect ourselves.”
Helen Nicholson, founder and CEO of The Networking Company and author, concurred. She burnt out twice because she prioritised work over rest – the second time almost killing herself.
Stress itself isn’t the enemy, she explained. It can drive peak performance. It’s neglecting recovery that leads to exhaustion and mistakes. Recovery has long been framed as laziness, but it’s actually essential for high performance.
Helen suggested structuring rest intentionally at multiple levels, while daily “full stops” signal the end of work, such as a bath and relaxing with a partner. Weekly rituals include a Sabbath or dedicated rest day with minimal obligations, while monthly recovery can take the form of a massage, facial, or other self-care ritual, she said.
“Get one of those big calendars and start planning your three-day breaks for 2026. And that is the way. Rest and recovery is the secret sauce of happiness,” said Helen.
Shalini Bhateja, VP of HR Africa at Coca-Cola, provided an anecdote that articulates the point about resting: A group of woodcutters notice that one man leaves for two hours each afternoon yet consistently cuts more wood than the rest. When asked his secret, he explains that he spends that time resting and sharpening his axe.
“I think this is exactly what you both talked about. Rest is important. Sharpening your axe, which is learning and reflecting, is very important,” said Shalini.
Listen to understand, not to respond
Listening is also something about which the panellists concurred. Embracing change begins with deep listening, not only to what is said, but also to what remains unsaid, said Shalini. By observing signals, rituals and systems, it’s easier to understand new environments, decode cultural norms and build trust.
Listening, rather than talking, fosters empathy, relevance and wiser responses. It transforms communication into connection and turns adaptation into growth, Shalini added.
Bryan, whose rugby career saw the Springboks win a World Cup, has been focusing on “unlearning to learn”. During this process of leaving behind habits and mindsets from his sporting career to adapt to business life, he has learnt that it’s important to “listen to listen, not listen to respond”.
“If you can guard your attention, where you put it, so when you’re with your children, be with your children. When you’re with your team, be with your team. And your ability to give that undivided attention to people, I believe that is going to be the secret,” said Helen.
