Coffee Chat with Eric #23: Work Hard. Then Live Well. Ultimate Work-Life Balance Quote...

July 18, 2025

I'd like to share the ultimate work-life balance quote, which pertains directly to this week's Coffee Chat...

“Don’t get so busy making a living, that you forget to make a life.”

—Dolly Parton 🎶

I’m taking Dolly’s work-life quote to heart today. 

I just got back from Austin, TX where I had the honor of speaking at the Incentive Marketing Association Summit (and emceeing the 2025 IMA Summit 2025 Awards). It was a whirlwind—lunches with industry friends, an Incentive Gift Card Coalition (IGCC) board meeting, partner pow-wows, client connections, and a night of laughs with the NeoCurrency team at The Comedy Mothership. 

We packed a lot into five days. And I loved it. We worked hard.

So today, I’m taking the day off, and my wife and I are road-tripping down to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to watch our youngest daughter perform at musical theater showcase.

Balance isn’t something we stumble into; it’s something we choose. We work hard so we can live fully.

A big thank you to all of the fantastic people who attended and continue to make the IMA Summit one of the most educational incentive industry events.

Till next week. —Eric