Life Balance: Work, Family and Personal
I realized (after the fact) that I had gotten out of balance last week relative to appropriate rest for my body and mind.
So excited and energized by my work and the great people I work and hang out with that at (almost) age 60 (January 2007) I sometimes forget I am not a youngster any more. Last week I worked over 80 hours and Friday I worked 22 1/2 hours out of 24. And, of course, exercised only once during the entire week.
Saturday I was exhausted, still had chores (such as shopping at Kensington Market which I love as cooking is one of my hobbies), about 20 business emails to process and one afternoon business call. I finally laid down about 4:30 in the afternoon to close my eyes for a few moments rest. Next thing I knew it was 6:30 Sunday morning and I had enjoyed 14 straight hours of blissful restorative rest! And, I made sure that Sunday was a total veg out zero bandwidth day. For example: I love doing laundry and house cleaning, so simple and pleasurable.
These experiences got me to wondering...
I'll bet people strive to achieve balance in their lives. In particular, achieving a reasonable balance with respect to family, work, personal, friends, education and play / relaxation. I also get the sense that we feel better when we are living our lives in a balanced way.
So I began to further wonder if other people from time-to-time also experience challenges in achieving this blissful (and useful) state of balance.
And, what happens to you when things get out of whack!
Just for fun I am including a few dictionary descriptives regarding balance relative to the discussion at hand:
balance noun... an even distribution of weight enabling someone or something to remain upright and steady
balance... stability of one's mind or feelings : the way to some kind of peace 2 a condition in which different elements are equal or in the correct proportions [in sing.] try to keep a balance between work and relaxation.
2 offset or compare the value of (one thing) with another : the cost of obtaining such information needs to be balanced against its benefits. • establish equal or appropriate proportions of elements in : balancing work and family life.
DERIVATIVES balancer noun ORIGIN Middle English (sense 3) : from Old French balance (noun), balancer (verb), based on late Latin (libra) bilanx ‘(balance) having two scalepans,’ from bi- ‘twice, having two’ + lanx ‘scalepan.’
Oh Joy!
So excited and energized by my work and the great people I work and hang out with that at (almost) age 60 (January 2007) I sometimes forget I am not a youngster any more. Last week I worked over 80 hours and Friday I worked 22 1/2 hours out of 24. And, of course, exercised only once during the entire week.
Saturday I was exhausted, still had chores (such as shopping at Kensington Market which I love as cooking is one of my hobbies), about 20 business emails to process and one afternoon business call. I finally laid down about 4:30 in the afternoon to close my eyes for a few moments rest. Next thing I knew it was 6:30 Sunday morning and I had enjoyed 14 straight hours of blissful restorative rest! And, I made sure that Sunday was a total veg out zero bandwidth day. For example: I love doing laundry and house cleaning, so simple and pleasurable.
These experiences got me to wondering...
I'll bet people strive to achieve balance in their lives. In particular, achieving a reasonable balance with respect to family, work, personal, friends, education and play / relaxation. I also get the sense that we feel better when we are living our lives in a balanced way.
So I began to further wonder if other people from time-to-time also experience challenges in achieving this blissful (and useful) state of balance.
And, what happens to you when things get out of whack!
Just for fun I am including a few dictionary descriptives regarding balance relative to the discussion at hand:
balance noun... an even distribution of weight enabling someone or something to remain upright and steady
balance... stability of one's mind or feelings : the way to some kind of peace 2 a condition in which different elements are equal or in the correct proportions [in sing.] try to keep a balance between work and relaxation.
2 offset or compare the value of (one thing) with another : the cost of obtaining such information needs to be balanced against its benefits. • establish equal or appropriate proportions of elements in : balancing work and family life.
DERIVATIVES balancer noun ORIGIN Middle English (sense 3) : from Old French balance (noun), balancer (verb), based on late Latin (libra) bilanx ‘(balance) having two scalepans,’ from bi- ‘twice, having two’ + lanx ‘scalepan.’
Oh Joy!
Labels: Balance, Life Balance
posted by Sheamus J. at 7:46 AM
5 Comments:
I read this as a post to make us think. Here's are some of my thoughts.
Perfect balance is a lofty goal, and a worthy one. It is usually easiest to depict in a fairly simple and disciplined life. In practical application I think balance has as many different definitions as people have different goals, beliefs and personalities.
For some (many artists for example), periods of great intensity are balanced by periods of withdrawal and regeneration. Any of us who employ creativity in our occupation will have the experience of being joined by all our muses for a while, as well as periods when they've fled and left us to plod along feeling more clay-footed. Mundane details always need attending to, they can't be ignored when our muses are en ville, yet we can summon the self discipline to devote ourselves to more of the mundane stuff in the rhythmic ebb of inspiration.
For those of us who work for ourselves, the balance sometimes appears absent when different periods are compared. For myself, I've found the process of balancing relates to each day or period. So a particularly stressful and/or invigorating week requires an equal amount or intensity of re-fueling or recovery that is not necessarily measured in equal time. Basic physical care and rest aside, the exertions of a day filled with positive stress also take a different toll than those of a day filled with negative stress.
We can learn to 'hear' our own state ...knowing, for example, when we're at peak or diminishing productivity.
Lovely as it is to philosophize about this, sometimes life just has its own way with us. Great as well as dreadful things can come along in bunches, and welcoming the first or dealing with the second is one of the things that can make life an interesting adventure.
An adventurous voyager through life, I've observed, will drive steep exciting mountains as well as coasting flat plains (and hopefully remember to note idyllic refuges on the map of personal favorites). Some are overcome by the highs and lows, and others thrive on them unfazed.
Vera
Kick-*ss great comment Vera!
A million thanks for pitching in! In particular three of your observations deeply resonated within my life experience:
[1] You write,"... easiest to depict in a fairly simple and disciplined life." Your observation beautifully encapsulates my way of living!
[2] You write, "... periods of great intensity are balanced by periods of withdrawal and regeneration." Your observation is so insightful based on my life experience!
[3] You write (and absolutely AWESOME!), "We can learn to 'hear' our own state ...knowing, for example, when we're at peak or diminishing productivity." And, from my own life lessons (hard won!) I know your observation to be true! YAHOO!
Soooo... Now... What's the story of manifesting balance in your life... Come on... What's your story!
Hi Sheamus,
It's a great topic.
I enjoyed reading your comment, but confess to being stumped by your question, which is why I haven't replied since Friday.
Balance is an extraordinarily complex issue for me personally, as it involves managing long term illness and disability in concert with the unique challenges inherent in entrepreneurial endeavors.
Vera
Hi Vera;
Thanks for "staying in the game"! Of course, I mean the great game of life!!
You write, "...confess to being stumped by your question". I fuly understand and... applaud your honesty as it is also a bit of a challenge for me at times to "find my voice" on an issue, it particular when it deals with my personal life.
I've learned that we can address any issue from an amazing variety of perspectives. For example... from our past, our present today and our future.
Thus, you might choose any timeframes to describe a personal vignette where you either achieved balance (for a moment) or tried hard and missed the mark, or maybe after the fact you may have realized "Oops forgot the balance thing".
Within the above context... I'm really looking forward to reading your brief story here in the comments section!
Hi Sheamus,
Thank you for the clarification. Whichever way I turn this, it still isn't yielding a relatively short and representative story that is appropriate for a blog comment. I could write an article, I suppose, full of practical advice or tips (if compelled), but the subject is not one that I have had an epiphany on.
Balance, for me, is as basic as breathing. I can remember a dramatic story about going into shock (stopped breathing) more easily than one about life balance. Actually, in 1992, I did lose my physical balance, suddenly and completely due to a neurological cause. It did not return. I spent several years using a wheelchair as I re-learned walking in the same way that a stroke victim does.
My personal view of life balance is not one of equalizing weight on a tightrope, but is rather more akin to juggling many things at once with my feet firmly planted on the ground. This analogy extends to things such as stress ...if one becomes too tense, for example, sufficient fluidity of motion and co-ordination may no longer be available. The ideal response to that is to put everything down and recharge or meditate, but since life does not always allow this luxury, one can learn to master thoughts, emotions and the body sufficiently to gradually shed the effects of stress while still in motion. It is a permanent work in progress.
Perhaps you have more to say on this subject?
Vera
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