How Well Do You Maintain Balance?

By Ken Lee

Dr. Ken,  

If trying to maintain balance in your life makes you feel like a tightrope walker, you're not alone. Most of us have so many demands on our time and energy, life can feel like a three-ring circus. Take this quiz to see how well you are meeting responsibilities, while also recognizing and fulfilling personal needs and wants.

True False

[ ] [ ] 1. The only way I can successfully manage my life is to take care of myself physically and emotionally.

[ ] [ ] 2. Nurturing myself enlarges my capacity to help others.

[ ] [ ] 3. I eat healthfully and exercise regularly.

[ ] [ ] 4. I get check-ups, go to the dentist, and take preventative precautions.

[ ] [ ] 5. I set aside personal, quiet time for myself, whether I'm meditating or simply letting my thoughts drift.

[ ] [ ] 6. I experience the gifts of each season: ice skating, sledding, bundled-up beach walks; gardening, hiking, more time outside; camping, swimming, barbeques; harvesting the bounty, gathering wood, spending more time inside.

[ ] [ ] 7. Creativity nurtures me, too. I do what I love, whether that’s cooking, drawing, painting, writing, dancing, singing or another creative pursuit.

[ ] [ ] 8. Reaching out to others enriches my life. I spend quality time with family and friends.

[ ] [ ] 9. Contributing to the world provides connection and purpose, so I give my time, energy and experience where it is most useful.

[ ] [ ] 10. I notice and heed the emotional signals that tell me I'm out of balance: irritability, overwhelm, resentment.

[ ] [ ] 11. If I feel that I’m catching a cold, I realize I may have stressed my immune system with over-activity, so I stop and take care of myself.

[ ] [ ] 12. When I need or want to, I say no to requests for my time.

[ ] [ ] 13. I listen to and honor the requests my body makes for such things as a nap, a walk, green vegetables, hot soup.

[ ] [ ] 14. If I have something planned for myself, I don't just toss that aside when someone makes a request of me.

[ ] [ ] 15. I'm busy, but I find time to do the things I want to do.

[ ] [ ] 16. I'm happy. I regularly experience well-being, contentment, even joy.

If you answered false more often than true, you may want to take a look at the questions to which you answered false and see if you can incorporate something of its message into your life.

As we all know, balance is key to having a happy more abundant life. We know when we give our work higher priority than our family, our family feels un-happy and neglected. And on the other hand if our family becomes a higher priority than our work, then our work suffers, we fall behind, and that causes additional stress at work, which spills over to our personal lives. 

Let's take a moment and examine our life where it is right now. Is it balanced? Does it seem like some areas of your life needs a bit more attention then it has been getting?

If you find people are not talking to you like they use to, that may be an indication they need your attention. Remember, you are the only thing you can control and change in any situation. 

If you have 10,000 un-read e-mails, that may be a good sign too. Not that any of you would have that problem. I've been there. 

What I am saying here is that, more times than not, communication is the first thing to go when life is out of balance. There is the idea that communication gets more solid as it fails. 

Intimate conversations are soft and pleasing to the ear. As we begin to feel unheard it gets harder and louder. At some point it becomes solid as a text or e-mail. Then as it becomes more solid it becomes someone else sent to communicate for us, like a lawyer or co-worker, or the kids. "Go tell your father he needs to take out the trash."  We have seen communication fail to the point where individuals have turned to violence just to be heard. But we don't want it to get that far.

We want to recognize it as soon as possible and regain work life balance. 

So, when you see people starting to reduce their level of communication with you, it is a good indication something is out of balance. Catch it and start communicating. 

I have a saying, "As long as we are communicating, we are ok." It may get loud, but we are still communicating. Eventually, if we talk long enough, the communication will soften and we will be back to soft and pleasing sounds. 

Please don’t hesitate to call if you’d like to explore this issue further. And if you know of any professional women who are making the shift to developing her own way of life or to find her path in life, please tell her about me. I will give her a 90 min self exploration session. By the end of the call she will have a better idea of what her next step should be.   

If you like this please share it and be sure to visit us on FaceBook at The Way of Energy. 

Ken Lee
Empowerment Coach
COR.E Performance Coach
Energy Leadership Index, Master Practitioner 
Thai Yoga Practitioner

Abracadabra (Aramaic ) - "I will create as was spoken"

kenlee@thewayofenergy.org

Author’s content used under license, © 2011 Claire Communications