Balance: Written by Kim Denton Owner/Salon Coach
Just the other day I was talking with a fellow stylist who has recently been a little distant and preoccupied. I asked her if everything was alright, and she said yes, but with a baby less than a year old, family, and a busy schedule on top of it all, it was clear that something had to give before she burned out.
Every one of us experiences the feeling of burnout at one time or another no matter what career path we choose, resulting in unbalance when it comes to family, work, spirituality, finance, and friends. But why? How to we let ourselves reach that point?
Consider the First French Tightrope Walker Charles Blondin
Charles Blondin practiced every day until he could walk on a tightrope, clear across Niagra Falls in 1859. Within 17 minutes he not only wowed the world, he made history. Metaphorically speaking, we are all trying to find balance like he did. While we don’t need to walk across a tightrope to find balance, I am saying that practice and strong boundaries will help us find stability within our lives.
Sometimes life moves so fast that we forget to be in the present moment when it comes to family, friends, and co-workers. We bring our family to work and our work to our family. For some reason or another, the present often takes a back seat when it comes to everyday moments.
Finding balance can be as easy as turning off our phones or TV and being present in the moment by taking the time to talk with one another. It’s time to be ruthless about starting with the simple things. Being in the present will take some time to get used to but the rewards will be worth it when you finally achieve balance, leaving you to wonder why you never did it in the first place.
Also, it’s important to remember that even though we are usually busy trying to make others happy by saying “yes” there are times when we really need to say “no”. It’s time to be ruthless. It’s important to adjust the time in our lives by putting the small stuff to the side and do stuff that benefits us individually as well. I’m not saying be selfish, I am however strongly advising to remember what your goals are and what helps your reach them through your choices.
Rebooting yourself is always a great way to find balance. TIME ALONE! What? Who has time for that? Make time! Start by finding time alone a little bit each day and try adding to it. Leisure time well spent. Try reading a book, watching a moving or just hanging out with friends and family. Laughing is good for the soul and helps to relieve stress and tension.
Exercise and meditation is also important when it comes to finding and maintaining balance. Try working out or doing yoga. It is a proven fact that exercise releases endorphin’s that help you think out your daily goals and how to achieve them. Some of the greatest problem solving happens during this time. Try finding time each day to get away from your house, kids, spouse, and work in order to meditate and work on yourself. Doing so will help you reach your higher power.
What other ways are there to help us achieve balance? Try creating a list with a scale from 1 – 10 when it comes to your friends, leisure time (vacations), life planning (goals and/or time management), finances, career, health, personal growth (spirituality) and family. They should all be balance with one another. If they aren’t, then you know what you need to work on.
The biggest cause of career burnout is a lack of balance. Balance is something we all need to learn, and especially teach the Generation Z that is about to enter the job force.