When I was in grad school, we used to joke, “What’s a weekend? What’s a holiday?” Like freelance work, it’s a competitive environment where you are nonetheless free to set your own hours and even – to some extent – goals. As a result, despite that level of autonomy, you are always left with the more or less nagging feeling that you ought to be working. As the university where I work is preparing for its Christmas shutdown and I see fewer and fewer people around the department every day, it seemed like a good time to talk about work–life balance.