For me it's the opposite. Home life comes first, and work is a secondary thing. If my wife needs some help, or the kids want me to play with them on the wii, I usually do. If there's an 'emergency' at work, say a server has blown up or something, then sure, I lock myself away for a bit until it's fixed.
Work will still be there when they're in bed.
I'm not suggesting that either way is right, but just that those are my priorities and they work for me.
Also it may have some to do with my own ways of working - I intersperse work with playing games, browsing the net, doing DIY, playing games with kids, walking the dog etc. I don't have any "work" or "non work" times really (Or an office - I usually work on the sofa in the living room). When I get stuck on work I might play a game on the Wii, and solve the problem while I'm racing round a mario cart track. It works for me, but quite possibly not others...
Yeah, finding the balance takes skill as well. When I enter my office, I'm in work mode. When I step out, I'm in home mode. Very important to keep that consistent, for everyone involved. My office may mean work, but I take pains to ensure that I don't impose on the household.
I work on different projects for various clients, so my time demands aren't always consistent but I often need to stay heads-down for extended times.
Very cool your time commitments permit you to jump in/out. My output would suffer, and I need the isolation to focus, so that environment wouldn't work well for me. But that's the key -- finding how it works for one's self and family is the correct answer, though results may vary from person to person.
That sounds ideal but then how many hours in a day do you think you're working? sleeping? I'm not saying you need to reach some optimal number but don't you miss having a bit more structure?
Work will still be there when they're in bed.
I'm not suggesting that either way is right, but just that those are my priorities and they work for me.
Also it may have some to do with my own ways of working - I intersperse work with playing games, browsing the net, doing DIY, playing games with kids, walking the dog etc. I don't have any "work" or "non work" times really (Or an office - I usually work on the sofa in the living room). When I get stuck on work I might play a game on the Wii, and solve the problem while I'm racing round a mario cart track. It works for me, but quite possibly not others...