Balance

Balance is a tricky little bugger. When it comes to having balance in your life, it’s different from person to person. Your age, your family size, your values, your desires, your goals all help to shape the person you are. They all play a role in your balance. For one person they may want to find balance between family and work only. Another person between healthy and unhealthy behaviors. And another between their hobbies, their work, their family, and their fitness. Some may only be balancing two categories, while another may be trying to balance ten. So where do you start? Where is your balance point?

For me I had to write out all the things that either require my time or I want to spend time on:

• My kids
• My Marriage
• My Faith
• My Job
• My Cookie Business
• My Writing
• My Fitness Goals
• My House

After looking at my list I started to write out some goals of each item – keeping it super basic:

• My kids
  • Be a present parent
• My Marriage
  • Spend quality time together
  • Show each other love and support

• My Faith
  • Read the Bible Every Morning
  • Go to church/Sunday School each week
  • Pray and trust in God

• My Job
  • Don’t get fired (just kidding)
  • Increase commissions by 10%
• My Cookie Business
  • Grow customer base by one new customer each month
• My Writing
  • Blog two times a week
  • Work on editing book weekly
  • Grow subscribers by 5% each month – Go subscribe!
• My Fitness Goals
  • Reduce mile time by one minute
  • Reach Goal Weight
  • Move 60 minutes a day, 5 days a week
• My House
  • Make it a peaceful space
  • Declutter
  • Develop a cleaning schedule

It’s a lot. I know it is. I have four kids at home on summer vacation. I work part time from home. It’s a lot to focus on so much at once. I’d be lying if I said I felt in balance all the time. Honestly sometimes I forget all the things I’m trying to balance. I may be crushing it at work and fitness but forgetting to make time for writing. New cookie order often means a messier house. Being a present parent means I turn down an order and don’t turn on my computer at night.

Balance doesn’t mean that I’m crushing it at all things all the time. For me, balance means I’m not trying to be perfect at all things. I’m not stressing over dishes in the sink when the kids ask me to come play outside. Balance is turning down a last-minute cookie order because I know it’ll take all my time that I get at night with my husband. Balance is getting up at 4:30 to workout because I won’t be able to fit it in during the day and I’ll be too tired at night.

Balance is finding that point where everything is still progressing but you’re not being crushed by the weight of it. June is a very busy month. I have work to do, fitness goals to hit, a house that needs to be cleaned before vacation time! I’ll be taking time off cookies after my orders I already have booked. I’ll take some time off work to visit with family and friends back home. I’ll probably write short little posts from my phone in the car. I’ll run at the park instead of riding my Peloton. I’ll adjust. I’ll shift. I’ll find the balance that my life deserves.

What is your list? What is your balance point? Maybe it’s too much. Maybe something has to go. Maybe your goals need to be adjusted or you need to wake up just a little earlier to find the time for it all. My word for 2022 is balance. I’ve been reminding myself of it when stress creeps up because I have a sink full of dishes and I just want to sit on the couch. I remind myself of the desire for balance when I’m wrapping up a cookie order at 6:30 before getting the kids up and ready for school. I remind myself that balance looks different today than it did last year, last night or then it will look a week from now. It’s shifting. It’s adjusting. It’s worth it. Find your balance and be okay with it not always looking like everyone else’s.

-XO

EM