Working on weekends, quick calls after work, and still asking, ‘Am I doing enough?’: Mumbai man on work-life balance in India vs Australia

As our professional lives become more demanding in this competitive world, the line separating work from personal life is slowly blurring into oblivion. This sentiment especially holds true in urban, metro cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore, where constant availability has slowly but surely become the norm. While professional growth continues, it raises an important question: are people sacrificing their downtime, relationships, and overall quality of life in the process? Recently, a LinkedIn post by an investment manager has made employees think about whether they are sacrificing too much for their work.

The investment banker, Manuraaj Garg, shared a personal anecdote on LinkedIn, where, during a candid conversation with a friend living in Australia, he realised how work-life balance has become a myth in India.

When work ends, life begins elsewhere

During the call, Manuraaj Garg noticed it was 4:30 pm in Australia, and his friend was sitting alone at a café. There was no meeting, no laptop, no hurried multitasking, but just a quiet cup of coffee. His workday had ended, with no lingering ‘quick calls’ or last-minute follow-ups. The evening ahead was reserved for a timely dinner, perhaps a cycling session, a round of golf, or even a leisurely walk on the beach with his wife, followed by an early night’s sleep.



In contrast, the investment manager pointed out that 8:30 pm in India often paints a very different picture. Office lights remain switched on, or professionals are still stuck in traffic, toggling between steering wheels and WhatsApp messages that read, ‘joining in two minutes’ or ‘can we quickly review this?’ Even Sundays are no longer sacrosanct, with laptops reopening and presentations taking over, as life momentarily pauses for Monday morning reviews.

Success grows, but personal time shrinks

Manuraaj Garg acknowledged that many professionals in India are doing well with strong educational backgrounds, promising careers, competitive salaries and rapid growth trajectories. Yet, beneath these achievements lies a harsh reality: scheduled date nights pencilled into calendars just to spend time with a partner, children waiting for parents to finish one final call, late-night food deliveries replacing home-cooked meals, daily step counts falling short of screen time and health checks taking a backseat as market updates dominate attention.

Manuraaj Garg noted that in India, there is the constant feeling of needing to do more, earn more and grow faster, driven by the awareness that someone else always seems to be ahead. While lifestyles have been upgraded with better phones, cars and homes, the same cannot be said for time, energy or mental space. Drawing a broader comparison, he observed that while work in countries like Australia tends to fit into life, in India, life often ends up fitting around work.