Gram’s Wisdom 45 Balance is an action.
Gram told me life is about balance and most of us don’t manage it very well. From our personal lives to the office, through the natural world, and back home to our communities. The bad news is that it’s hard to be all and do all. The good news is no one expects it from you!
Gram felt that balance in life is not an act, but an action. Like many other parts of life, it’s a journey, not a destination. Her theory was that we should take action to move all the different parts of life forward, understanding that not all parts move at the same rate. Relax and play too long, and you could go hungry. Work too much and you put your health at risk.
Navigating the challenges of life can be an experience filled with many ups and downs. While seeking knowledge of specific topics is essential for success, Gram thought the nature of learning life skills should go wider than just learning how to find a job or pay the bills, important as they are. She believed you must also act on what you learn.
With that in mind, here are 10 actions you can take to add more balance to life.
Learning balance.
Balance is a learned quality that is about constantly improving. The value of seeking balance in all areas of life is that it can be the thin line between flying and falling. Imagine your quality of life if you dedicated 100% of your time to work and had no time for relaxation. The outcome may be a successful career, or it could be so much stress and exhaustion you have no life at all. In all aspects of life, balance can restore your energy while preserving your future.
One way this balance can be achieved is by practicing mindfulness. When considering your diet, are you being mindful of what you eat? When looking at your time spent on recreational activities, are you spending more time having fun rather than feeling you are neglecting your responsibilities?
Considering where you are putting your energy will help you to see where you need to make needed changes.
Mental balance.
The importance of protecting your mental health has never been a higher priority—and it has never been a more difficult task. The National Institute on Mental Health recommends getting regular exercise, prioritizing sleep, practicing gratitude, and staying connected to friends and family to help with mental health. If you have trouble sleeping or concentrating, have appetite changes that lead to weight change, or lose interest in activities that you usually enjoy, it’s time to seek help from a professional.
Emotional balance.
According to the Mental Health Foundation, emotional health is a “positive state of well-being which enables an individual to…meet the demands of everyday life.” It begins with identifying your emotions and holding them up to a mirror to determine their validity.
Emotions may at times tell you negative things, but by taking a step back and scrutinizing your thoughts you can realize that emotions are not facts—they are reactions. Balancing emotional health is about recognizing your strengths, realizing, and accepting your weaknesses, then moving forward with a positive perception.
Persistence and endurance.
Life is full of loveliness, but it is also filled with its fair share of challenges. Being able to endure tough circumstances is an essential part of survival. When a runner loses focus and grows tired during a race, she falls behind and eventually gives up.
Cultivating persistence involves staying focused on your end goal, and not allowing the distractions of life to blow you off course. One primary way to build your persistence and endurance is to completely immerse yourself in your goals. Educate yourself, stay motivated, and make your dream real. This will allow you to maintain your focus.
Create a spiritual practice of your own.
When your life is jam-packed with to-do lists and errands, it’s easy to neglect spiritual health. Cultivate your spiritual life by creating space in your schedule to sit quietly—in harmony with nature, if possible—and reflect on the deeper meaning of your life.
What is your purpose? Are your habits and activities working in harmony with that purpose? If not, consider how you might rearrange your priorities to create spiritual synergy in your life.
Physical balance.
Author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn once said, “Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live in.” Your body is a menagerie of working parts, and balancing your physical health can be overwhelming, so consider adopting these tips.
Strive for a balanced circadian rhythm by going to bed and waking at roughly the same time each day.
Take two 15- to 30-minute brisk walks every day.
Strive to eat mostly foods that contain only one ingredient. A tomato is a tomato. An apple is an apple. Broccoli is broccoli. Removing processed foods from your diet will help your body remain balanced.
Relationship balance.
It seems you spend most of your life figuring out how to balance relationships. Siblings, parents, friends, and ultimately a spouse. The key to balancing relationships lies in your ability to nurture both yourself and your partner.
When you enter a committed relationship, it’s as if there are suddenly three lives to look out for: yours, your partners, and the life of the relationship you’re forming.
These tips can help maintain a healthy relationship balance:
Listen: You have two ears and one mouth, so listen twice as often as you speak.
Communicate: When you do speak, positive and encouraging words build up your partner and your relationship.
Be Their Biggest Fan: Celebrate all your partner’s wins and let them know you think they are amazing.
Make Time: Pursue your interests and extend the same courtesy to your partner. Then create hobbies you can pursue together.
Become comfortable with your feelings and learn how to articulate them in a way that is respected. By doing so, you will get your needs met without feeling as if you must compromise.
Make your friends count.
Demanding careers plus the ability to work from home can cause our social lives to be put on the back burner.
If it’s been ages since you connected with friends, consider these tips to bring some fire back to your social life.
Schedule It: If you’re someone who lives and dies by their calendar, then use that to your advantage and carve out regular time for social activities.
Take a Device Break: Business emails and calls have a way of stealing from social time, so take advantage of the “Silence Notifications” feature and focus on the people who are right in front of you.
Learn To Say No: If professional obligations are getting in the way of personal events that are important to you, evaluate your assignments and see if there are things that can be delegated. Don’t be afraid to share your situation with your boss—good bosses want happy, balanced employees who aren’t burned out by their jobs.
Community balance.
The world’s troubles are relentlessly beamed into your consciousness, and in most instances, you are powerless to help. However, you have immense power when you help an elderly shopper reach a product high on the shelf. Show empathy and kindness by checking on a sick neighbor to see if she needs anything from the store. Small acts of kindness and thoughtfulness in your community are a way to bring a healthy balance to the communities where you live—not to mention the positivity it contributes to your mental well-being.
Take ownership and responsibility.
One of the principal markings of maturity is the ability to take ownership of your actions. Every action comes with a set consequence, whether positive or negative. When making a choice that negatively affects yourself or others, do you have the maturity to own up to your mistakes and seek reconciliation?
When it comes to managing priorities, are you emphasizing taking care of your responsibilities first? Ownership and responsibility work hand in hand when it comes to growth. In addition, taking ownership of yourself demonstrates self-esteem and respect.
You will not succumb to unhealthy changes to appease others. You will know what you want out of life and accept nothing less. This encourages others to show you the same amount of respect.
My final thought.
Modern life, for most people, is frenetic. We are exposed to a numbing number of opportunities that come with a steep price. The cost for this is chronic stress and often a general dissatisfaction with our joyless lives.
A life of balance isn’t unreachable. Choose one small thing from the list above that you want to change and do it consistently. Watch and be amazed at the balance and harmony you can bring to your life.
Thank you for taking the time to read this post.
For more information, check out these posts.