OPINION: Finding balance in a burnt out economy

Not long ago, a friend of mine closed one of the biggest deals of his career and then rushed straight to the hospital where his wife had just given birth. Within hours he was fielding congratulatory calls from investors while trying to cradle a newborn.

“I just want to be there for both,” he said, half-laughing, half-exhausted. That image of him in the hospital corridor, juggling the phone in one hand and a baby in the other, has stayed with me. It captures something of what fatherhood looks like today.

This is a business column, not a parenting guide. Yet whenever I speak to leaders across industries, fatherhood comes up. Often with pride, sometimes with anxiety, always with the sense that we are walking a tightrope. Many of us want to push forward professionally while being loving parents, supportive partners, engaged members of our communities, and still keep an eye on our own health, faith, and wellbeing.

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Earlier generations had clearer, if narrower, roles. Today, we are free to be more present with our children, to enjoy them openly, to say without embarrassment that we love bedtime stories as much as boardroom victories. That freedom is a gift, but it also makes balance harder. The truth is, there is no perfect formula. There is only the daily work of trying, of learning when to lean in and when to let go.

I know this challenge well. As a startup founder, a father of four, and a part-time rabbi, there are days when I feel pulled in five directions at once. I ask myself: when should I close the laptop? How do I make sure my children get my full attention when my head is still at work? And where do I find time for friendships, community, and Torah learning? These questions are not mine alone.

Across the UK, stress and burnout have become alarmingly common. Nine in ten adults report feeling high pressure, while most workplaces still lack proper structures to prevent it. Businesses lose billions, but the human toll is greater still. Families feel it most.

This isn’t just my personal struggle.

Across the UK, we are living through what can only be called a burnout epidemic.

91% of adults reported experiencing high or extreme levels of pressure or stress in the past year (Mental Health UK, 2025). Yet only about a third of workplaces (32%) have formal plans in place to spot and prevent chronic stress (Mental Health UK, 2025). That gap is costing us dearly. Stress-related absences are costing UK businesses £5.2 billion every year, with a 35% increase in stress-related sick leave since 2020 (Work.Life, 2025).

The human toll is even more striking. 79% of UK workers experience workplace stress regularly (Spill, 2024). One in five employees (21%) say stress impacts their performance, yet they don’t take time off or adjust their hours (Mental Health UK, 2025).

So what helps? For me, three ideas keep me steady.

First, to accept that I am not in full control. Effort matters, but success also depends on timing, luck, and faith. Shabbat reminds me of that. Every Friday night, I put my phone away and step into a rhythm that says, “enough.” That boundary protects not just my spiritual life but my family too.

Second, to be kind to myself as a parent. No one gets it right every time. The psychologist Bruno Bettelheim spoke of “good enough parenting,” and he was right. Our children don’t need perfect fathers, they need present ones. Sometimes 70% with love counts more than 100% with stress.

Third, to plan parenting when calm, not when exhausted. Reading books like How to Talk So Kids Will Listen has helped me think about the long game of communication, not just the firefight of the moment. Jewish tradition adds its own wisdom: the Chovot HaTalmidim teaches that raising a child is like tending a garden. Each child already has within them the seed of who they are meant to be. Our role is not to force but to nurture.

Fatherhood in the modern age is not easy, but it is rich. Numbers may tell us burnout is rising, yet faith teaches us to let go of what we cannot carry. Kindness keeps us from collapsing under pressure. Reflection keeps us growing. And in the best moments, when work is set aside and family comes first, fatherhood shines not as a burden but as the greatest blessing of all.

Sam Fromson is the COO of YuLife, Community Rabbi of Golders Green Synagogue, husband to Hadassah and father to four young children.