Serena Williams’ talented husband, Alexis Ohanian excels in every role he takes on. Whether it is advocating for female athletes’ rights or being the best dad to Olympia and Adira, his dedication to both work and family is truly inspirational. However, his unwavering commitment to both intrigues his followers with the question: how does he balance these roles so effectively? In a recent discussion, this Reddit co-founder shared his thoughts, leaving his followers pleasantly surprised with his interesting perspective.

Ohanian discussed his perceptions of work-life balance. In 2023, this Reddit co-founder dropped an interesting thought when he dismissed the idea of a healthy work-life balance and simply relied on adjusting priorities according to needs. He tweeted on X calling work-life balance a “farce” and believed people who aspire to this are going down the wrong path. “Work-life balance is a farce. If you’re chasing that, you’re doing it wrong. You’ll never achieve anything close to that, nor should you. The key to managing work and life is knowing when you want to focus on which part — accepting that it’s a shifting equilibrium. If you’re chasing that, you’re doing it wrong. You’ll never achieve anything close to that, nor should you.” said Ohanian.

Serena Williams’ partner emphasized the exact same sentiments and shed further light on this matter again in a recent episode of his podcast Business Dad. But more recently, Ohanian shared a reel on his IG platform where he amalgamated snippets from his work tour as well as his bonding moments with his elder daughter Olympia. It showed how the techie guy successfully conducted Athlos NYC for female track and field athletes. He also spent time with Olympia showing her why it is important to advocate for the equal pay rights of the female athletes. More than that, he also dropped his opinion on the matter of work-life balance in that video highlighting that his opinion on the subject remains the same. “I think regardless of the industry, the top practitioners all have a way of thinking that has been informed by their family life. Because, yeah, I mean, yes, our work lives often take up as much or more time than we spend with our families. But the two are not separate, they bleed into each other all the time. I think the idea of it being a separate thing, like ‘Oh you come home from work and you’re back home’ versus you’re at the office now, and home life is separate. It always was an illusion that previous generations kind of papered around. But it’s falling apart now,” said Ohanian.

This Reddit co-founder also revealed how his wife Serena Williams helped him to develop this thought. Reflecting on a simple conversation with his wife, Ohanian explained how he realized that overworking is not a great trait and has nothing special to be celebrated.

Alexis Ohanian received his lessons about hustle culture from wife Serena Williams

Ohanian explained in a CNBC interview in 2023 that his wife asked him to take a better look at his work-life balance in 2016. “She was like, You work more than I do, and at first I was so flattered. I was like, ‘Wow, thank you so much.” However, Ohanian got a reality check when Williams confessed that her words “wasn’t a compliment.”  This Reddit co-founder then explained that over-working is “not actually the way to sustained greatness, because, especially as an athlete, you have to be spending as much time recovering and regrouping as you do working, training and practicing. Otherwise you can’t be at your best for a long time.” Reflecting on his dedication, he also said, “It’s been really important for me to make sure that when I am working, I am all in on focusing on work. And when I’m not, I’m all in on not.”

Alexis Ohanian’s take on work-life balance opened a new door of thinking for current-generation working parents. It shows how one can assimilate their work and family by allowing the right priority based on the need. If one can follow his ideas, and understand how work and personal lives are essential, then they might flourish in their fields and experience the joy in work without missing out on the fun of their personal lives.