What Is Life Balance, really? #LMBLC – 1
Posted in Balanced Lifestyle | August 1, 2011 | 33 Comments
First of all I want to thank you for signing up for Live a More balanced Life Challenge (#LMLBC.) Your response to the challenge was incredible. Thank you for introducing yourself and sharing your struggles with life balance in the comments (if you haven’t introduced yourself yet you can do that here.)
Now let’s start our challenge.
Before we start building more balanced lives it’s important to understand what life balance really is. Did you ever think about it yourself? Did you give life balance your personal definition?
A lot of people are looking for life balance without even knowing what it is. They think that it’s some state of mind and body where everything just feels, looks, and seems perfect and stable. Is it possible in reality? Absolutely, not. Even more, this type of life balance would be a disaster that wouldn’t let you grow, wouldn’t let you reach your goals and wouldn’t let your evolve as a person.
Sometimes the best way to describe what something is to start by describing what it’s not. Let me tell you what LIFE BALANCE IS NOT:
LIFE BALANCE IS:
Here is my personal definition of life balance:
Life balance is inner peace and happiness.
Life balance is the understanding that my life is full and yet I have plenty of room to bring something new into it.
Life balance is a happy family that I have and smiles on the faces of my girls.
Life balance is taking care of my body without forgetting my soul.
Life balance is walking outside and seeing the beauty around me that inspires me day after day.
Life balance is faith that I have.
Life balance is my focus on the most important things in my life and not being afraid to let go of less important tasks, projects and people.
Life balance is an imperfect mixture of creativity, work, family, exercise and my personal time. It’s very unique, chaotic at times and totally worth all the efforts to keep it in balance.
5 Tips for Better Work-Life Balance
Beat burnout by making more time for the activities and people that matter most to you.WebMD Feature
By Jen Uscher
Reviewed By Hansa D. Bhargava, MD
If you're finding it more challenging than ever to juggle the demands of your job and the rest of your life, you're not alone.
Many people are putting in extra hours, or using their smartphones to be on call when they're not physically at work.
"A lot of people are having a more difficult time finding balance in their lives because there have been cutbacks or layoffs where they work. They're afraid it may happen to them, so they're putting in more hours," says psychologist Robert Brooks, PhD, co-author of The Power of Resilience: Achieving Balance, Confidence, and Personal Strength in Your Life.
"But even if you don't have much control over the hours you have to work, you can ask yourself: In what other ways am I bringing greater enjoyment into my life?" Brooks says. "Focus your time and attention on things you can control."
Here are five ways to bring a little more balance to your daily routine:
1. Build downtime into your schedule.When you plan your week, make it a point to schedule time with your family and friends, and activities that help you recharge.
If a date night with your spouse or a softball game with friends is on your calendar, you'll have something to look forward to and an extra incentive to manage your time well so you don't have to cancel.
"It helps to be proactive about scheduling," says Laura Stack, a productivity expert in Denver and author ofSuperCompetent: The Six Keys to Perform at Your Productive Best. "When I go out with my girlfriends, we all whip out our cell phones and put another girls' night out on the calendar for 1 month later."
Stack also plans an activity with her family, like going to a movie or the park, every Sunday afternoon. "We do this because if there's nothing on the schedule, time tends to get frittered away and the weekend may end without us spending quality time together," she says.
Michael Neithardt, an actor and television commercial producer in New York City, wakes up 3 hours before he has to leave for work so he can go for a run and spend some time with his wife and baby.
"A lot of my friends tend to wake up, shower, and go straight to work. And they often complain about having no time to do anything," he says. "I find that if I can get those 3 hours in the morning, I have a more productive and peaceful workday. I can sure tell the difference when I don't."
2. Drop activities that sap your time or energy."Many people waste their time on activities or people that add no value -- for example, spending too much time at work with a colleague who is constantly venting and gossiping," says Marilyn Puder-York, PhD, a psychologist and executive coach in New York and Connecticut.
Her advice: Take stock of activities that don't enhance your career or personal life, and minimize the time you spend on them.
You may even be able to leave work earlier if you make a conscious effort to limit the time you spend on the web and social media sites, making personal calls, or checking your bank balance. "We often get sucked into these habits that are making us much less efficient without realizing it," Stack says.
3. Rethink your errands.Consider whether you can outsource any of your time-consuming household chores or errands.
Could you order your groceries online and have them delivered? Hire a kid down the street to mow your lawn? Have your dry cleaning picked up and dropped off at your home or office? Order your stamps online so you don't have to go to the post office? Even if you're on a tight budget, you may discover that the time you'll save will make it worth it.
Stack also suggests trading services with friends. Offer to do tasks that you enjoy or that you were planning to do anyway.
"You could exchange gardening services for babysitting services," Stack says. "If you like to cook, you could prepare and freeze a couple of meals and give them to a friend in exchange for wrapping your holiday gifts."
4. Get moving.It's hard to make time for exercise when you have a jam-packed schedule, but it may ultimately help you get more done by boosting your energy level and ability to concentrate.
"Research shows exercise can help you to be more alert," Brooks says. "And I've noticed that when I don't exercise because I'm trying to squeeze in another half hour of writing, I don't feel as alert."
Samantha Harris, a lawyer who works for a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia, goes to her gym 2 or 3 mornings a week before her family wakes up. "It's been a real boost in terms of the way I feel for the rest of the day," she says. "I feel like my head is clearer and I've had a little time to myself."
5. Remember that a little relaxation goes a long way.Don't assume that you need to make big changes to bring more balance to your life. Brooks recommends setting realistic goals, like leaving the office earlier 1 night per week.
"Slowly build more activities into your schedule that are important to you," he says. "Maybe you can start by spending an hour a week on your hobby of carpentry, or planning a weekend getaway with your spouse once a year."
Even during a hectic day, you can take 10 or 15 minutes to do something that will recharge your batteries. "Take a bath, read a trashy novel, go for a walk, or listen to music," Stack says. "You have to make a little time for the things that ignite your joy."
Posted in Balanced Lifestyle | August 1, 2011 | 33 Comments
First of all I want to thank you for signing up for Live a More balanced Life Challenge (#LMLBC.) Your response to the challenge was incredible. Thank you for introducing yourself and sharing your struggles with life balance in the comments (if you haven’t introduced yourself yet you can do that here.)
Now let’s start our challenge.
Before we start building more balanced lives it’s important to understand what life balance really is. Did you ever think about it yourself? Did you give life balance your personal definition?
A lot of people are looking for life balance without even knowing what it is. They think that it’s some state of mind and body where everything just feels, looks, and seems perfect and stable. Is it possible in reality? Absolutely, not. Even more, this type of life balance would be a disaster that wouldn’t let you grow, wouldn’t let you reach your goals and wouldn’t let your evolve as a person.
Sometimes the best way to describe what something is to start by describing what it’s not. Let me tell you what LIFE BALANCE IS NOT:
- It’s not having a perfect day every day;
- It’s not devoting equal attention to every aspect of your life on a daily basis;
- It’s not fitting more things into your schedule;
- It’s not a magical cure for any problem;
- It’s not something that you reach once and then maintain it for the rest of your life.
LIFE BALANCE IS:
- A journey – because every day you must make steps to stay in balance. Every day something will try to push you out of balance (and most of the time this “something” will succeed) but every time you will be able to bounce back to your balance.
- Attitude – because living a balanced life means having a balanced mindset. You can’t force yourself to make choices that are not natural to you. You can practice creating a balanced attitude through exercises, self discovery and constant work on yourself. At some point your work pays off and you start seeing the entire world in balanced colors and start making decisions that support your balanced lifestyle.
- Focus – because every area of your life (family, health, work, finances, passions, social life and spirituality) requires different amounts of your time and attention at different points of your life. A new parent of course will focus more on his/her child then on anything else in the world. A graduate student will put all effort into writing his/her thesis and looking for a good job. A retired person will focus on health and spirituality more than anything else. When you live a balanced life you can shift your focus in the right direction for a certain period of time (whether it’s a day or a year) without completely neglecting other areas of life.
- Core belief – because without this foundation there is nothing to build your balance upon. You musthave a belief that you can go to whenever you feel fragile, unmotivated, weak or simply in doubt. Going on a spiritual journey is often the best way to find that belief and build your life according to it.
- Very personal – because there are no two people in this world who have identical goals, challenges, needs and talents. It’s impossible to write an ultimate how-to guide for each person to live their lives in balance. You can take tips, advice and examples from other people and transform them to bring your life in balance.
Here is my personal definition of life balance:
Life balance is inner peace and happiness.
Life balance is the understanding that my life is full and yet I have plenty of room to bring something new into it.
Life balance is a happy family that I have and smiles on the faces of my girls.
Life balance is taking care of my body without forgetting my soul.
Life balance is walking outside and seeing the beauty around me that inspires me day after day.
Life balance is faith that I have.
Life balance is my focus on the most important things in my life and not being afraid to let go of less important tasks, projects and people.
Life balance is an imperfect mixture of creativity, work, family, exercise and my personal time. It’s very unique, chaotic at times and totally worth all the efforts to keep it in balance.
5 Tips for Better Work-Life Balance
Beat burnout by making more time for the activities and people that matter most to you.WebMD Feature
By Jen Uscher
Reviewed By Hansa D. Bhargava, MD
If you're finding it more challenging than ever to juggle the demands of your job and the rest of your life, you're not alone.
Many people are putting in extra hours, or using their smartphones to be on call when they're not physically at work.
"A lot of people are having a more difficult time finding balance in their lives because there have been cutbacks or layoffs where they work. They're afraid it may happen to them, so they're putting in more hours," says psychologist Robert Brooks, PhD, co-author of The Power of Resilience: Achieving Balance, Confidence, and Personal Strength in Your Life.
"But even if you don't have much control over the hours you have to work, you can ask yourself: In what other ways am I bringing greater enjoyment into my life?" Brooks says. "Focus your time and attention on things you can control."
Here are five ways to bring a little more balance to your daily routine:
1. Build downtime into your schedule.When you plan your week, make it a point to schedule time with your family and friends, and activities that help you recharge.
If a date night with your spouse or a softball game with friends is on your calendar, you'll have something to look forward to and an extra incentive to manage your time well so you don't have to cancel.
"It helps to be proactive about scheduling," says Laura Stack, a productivity expert in Denver and author ofSuperCompetent: The Six Keys to Perform at Your Productive Best. "When I go out with my girlfriends, we all whip out our cell phones and put another girls' night out on the calendar for 1 month later."
Stack also plans an activity with her family, like going to a movie or the park, every Sunday afternoon. "We do this because if there's nothing on the schedule, time tends to get frittered away and the weekend may end without us spending quality time together," she says.
Michael Neithardt, an actor and television commercial producer in New York City, wakes up 3 hours before he has to leave for work so he can go for a run and spend some time with his wife and baby.
"A lot of my friends tend to wake up, shower, and go straight to work. And they often complain about having no time to do anything," he says. "I find that if I can get those 3 hours in the morning, I have a more productive and peaceful workday. I can sure tell the difference when I don't."
2. Drop activities that sap your time or energy."Many people waste their time on activities or people that add no value -- for example, spending too much time at work with a colleague who is constantly venting and gossiping," says Marilyn Puder-York, PhD, a psychologist and executive coach in New York and Connecticut.
Her advice: Take stock of activities that don't enhance your career or personal life, and minimize the time you spend on them.
You may even be able to leave work earlier if you make a conscious effort to limit the time you spend on the web and social media sites, making personal calls, or checking your bank balance. "We often get sucked into these habits that are making us much less efficient without realizing it," Stack says.
3. Rethink your errands.Consider whether you can outsource any of your time-consuming household chores or errands.
Could you order your groceries online and have them delivered? Hire a kid down the street to mow your lawn? Have your dry cleaning picked up and dropped off at your home or office? Order your stamps online so you don't have to go to the post office? Even if you're on a tight budget, you may discover that the time you'll save will make it worth it.
Stack also suggests trading services with friends. Offer to do tasks that you enjoy or that you were planning to do anyway.
"You could exchange gardening services for babysitting services," Stack says. "If you like to cook, you could prepare and freeze a couple of meals and give them to a friend in exchange for wrapping your holiday gifts."
4. Get moving.It's hard to make time for exercise when you have a jam-packed schedule, but it may ultimately help you get more done by boosting your energy level and ability to concentrate.
"Research shows exercise can help you to be more alert," Brooks says. "And I've noticed that when I don't exercise because I'm trying to squeeze in another half hour of writing, I don't feel as alert."
Samantha Harris, a lawyer who works for a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia, goes to her gym 2 or 3 mornings a week before her family wakes up. "It's been a real boost in terms of the way I feel for the rest of the day," she says. "I feel like my head is clearer and I've had a little time to myself."
5. Remember that a little relaxation goes a long way.Don't assume that you need to make big changes to bring more balance to your life. Brooks recommends setting realistic goals, like leaving the office earlier 1 night per week.
"Slowly build more activities into your schedule that are important to you," he says. "Maybe you can start by spending an hour a week on your hobby of carpentry, or planning a weekend getaway with your spouse once a year."
Even during a hectic day, you can take 10 or 15 minutes to do something that will recharge your batteries. "Take a bath, read a trashy novel, go for a walk, or listen to music," Stack says. "You have to make a little time for the things that ignite your joy."
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