“The best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that, and live that way, you are really a wise man.” –Euripides
Balance… what does it mean to you? Is true balance in life possible? There are different types of balance; physical balance, emotional balance, life balance. While the above quote makes a good point of keeping balance in your life being beneficial, is it something that is truly achievable?
I don’t know that finding complete balance in life, at all times, really is possible. I think we need to strive for finding a good mix of how much energy we put into our work, our families, ourselves and our emotions. However, I don’t believe that we can have an equal balance in all areas, at least not if we expect to EXCEL in what we do. It is difficult to commit to eight hours of excellent work, eight hours of quality family time, and eight hours of healthy sleep every day. I think we need to look at life balance more from an averages standpoint. If I want to excel in my work, quite often I need to throw myself into it more than 8 hours a day or more than 40 hours per week. To get a book written, I need to work on it consistently and somewhat obsessively. When my focus is on work, clients and writing, it is probable that the time I spend with my family or getting good sleep will be less than its equal part.
To be a good partner and parent, I need to make sure that I make my family a priority and sometimes that means they will take precedence over my work. If someone in our family gets sick or has special needs, other things need to fall to the wayside. What does it mean to be an excellent parent or partner anyway? When I was raising my son, who is now turning 25, I worked full-time and often worked more than one job, I also went to college full-time for most of his childhood, and I raised him as a single parent. I don’t think there was a lot of balance in my life during all those years, but had I not thrown myself into what I was doing I never would have been able to build a home for us to live in or gotten the degrees I needed to pursue work that fulfilled me and supported my family. Now my family consists of a being part of a two-parent family and having a teenaged bonus daughter and an adult son. I’m done with all of my degrees and although I am still constantly working on continuing education and additional certifications, school is not a full-time priority in my life.
I think we need to make sure we are getting enough of everything, but not necessarily seeking balance. Life is much more of an ebb and flow of priorities and focus. As Franklin Covey says, schedule your priorities. It’s OK if those priorities change over time. What I am saying is maybe we need to shift our focus to acceptance and not feeling guilty when we don’t have complete balance, per se, and instead focus on shining in what is important to us.
Let me know what you’d like to read about. If you have questions about fitness, wellness or empowerment, please send me an email: [email protected].
Liz Jones is the Wellness Coordinator for the City of Mesquite and a wellness professional in Rockwall, Mesquite, Wylie and surrounding areas. She is a writer, certified yoga instructor, personal trainer and wellness coach. She holds a Master’s Degree in Organizational Leadership and Strategic Management, with a graduate certificate in Ethics and Leadership. Her undergraduate studies included communication, business, writing, art, fitness, and dance. Liz Jones can be reached at: [email protected].
