The Foreign Service Journal, May 2011

M A Y 2 0 1 1 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 19 away from family in some of the world’s most dangerous corners. Indeed, such service often inspires a sense of pride in serving their country where they are most needed. When regrets do come up, For- eign Service employees tend to mention the more mundane ones: the long hours at the office; the cousins, aunts, uncles and grand- parents whom their children don’t get to know; the ca- reer sacrifices that a spouse made to become part of the Foreign Service family. Regrets? I’ve Had a Few Robert Griffiths, who raised three children with his wife during a 30-year Foreign Service career that has taken him to posts in Asia, Africa and Europe, remem- bers vividly the moments when his job took precedence over his family. On one occasion, while serving in Beijing, he was the control officer for a large, high-ranking congressional del- egation whose visit ended on a Saturday night. He re- members that he was especially glad to see them off because his daughter was ready to depart for college, and would make an important presentation at the family’s church service the next morning. Late that night, he got the bad news: The de legation had been unable to land at its next destination and had decided to return to Beijing. Could he make transporta- tion, hotel and other arrangements for them, including a Sunday program? “Needless to say,” Griffiths recalled. “I missed my daughter’s presentation and a small but im- portant piece of our family life.” Such regrets may seem small in the grand scheme of things, but become important when they occur time after time. There was the expensive concert Griffiths missed when a démarche was scheduled at the last minute. “My wife was not happy,” he recalls. And, of course, there were the long hours. In Beijing, for in- stance, 12-hour workdays were the norm. “There were many times when I would not see my kids for several days.” When the Journal asked mem- bers of the American Foreign Service Association for anecdotes about work-life balance in their jobs, similar stories were not hard to find. Let there be no doubt: Unaccompanied posts and danger- ous assignments are tough, but over the course of a long career, it’s the consistently long hours, the missed events with kids and spouses and the distance from extended family that cause the most strain. That doesn’t mean, though, that the regret outweighs the enjoyment. Nearly all members who responded to AFSA’s survey concurred that they don’t regret their choice to join the Foreign Service, and the benefits of the job outweigh the negatives. And they were remark- ably stoic about the sacrifices they make for the job, often referencing the equally great sacrifices that members of the military make, and even those of regular Americans working long hours back in the United States. Griffiths’ take was typical: “I am sure that every pro- fessional job entails obligations that interfere with a healthy career/family balance,” he said. “I don’t know whether Foreign Service officers have more than their share, but perhaps being overseas does accentuate the feeling of loss.” Calling All Workaholics Notably, few respondents blamed the State Depart- ment for the routine frustrations of their working lives. Some even said that the department has done much to encourage employees to take time for themselves and their families, only to run up against a workaholic culture driven by motivated people eager to rise up the ranks. It’s no secret that top college graduates have long competed intensely for a limited number of Foreign Service jobs each year. An annual survey by the Philadelphia-based research firm Universum Commu- nications has consistently found that college undergrad- uates rank the State Department as one of the most desirable employers in the United States. Indeed, for much of the last decade, State was among the top five. So there will probably never be a shortage of intelligent, motivated Americans who want to go overseas to repre- sent their country. F O C U S Missed family dinners and outings may seem small in the grand scheme of things, but become important when they keep happening. Shawn Zeller, a regular contributor to the Journal , is a free- lance writer in Washington, D.C.