Everybody talks about work – life balance. It is a popular discussion with numerous answers and different approaches all over the public domain. It is addressed both practically and spiritually.
“Everything in moderation” or “Pan metron ariston” said Cleobulus, one of the Seven Sages of Greece. He talked about finding balance in the 6th century BC. Today we still struggle to achieve this. Can we ever achieve the perfect balance? What is it all about? Is it about the destination, or about the journey?
I do believe that finding balance is not limited to the dipole between the personal and the professional. Finding balance is relevant to all aspects of our lives, anything that involves decision making and relations with others. No event is ever all black or all white, hardly ever is someone completely right or completely wrong. We constantly need to find balance and peace in our relationships with friends, colleagues, family, even with ourselves. Perhaps most importantly with ourselves.
Balance is about peace and fairness. A state where all elements have been considered; all the different facts and opinions and feelings.
There are so many opposites to consider:
- Caring for looks VS caring for education.
- Working towards goals VS watching TV all the time
- Being a fashion victim VS not caring about image
- Being hysterical about how things are done VS being without concern, care, interest
- Being a liar and a hypocrite VS being brutally honest
- Being superficial VS taking everything close to heart, being super sensitive
Considering all of the above, it is so easy to give the answer: find the golden rule, the happy medium, the middle ground. Who would disagree? But what does this really mean?
It is so important that we are in peace with ourselves. I strongly feel the need to be in peace with myself, in my effort to be a good person.
- I want to eat the cake, but be thin as well
- I want to party all the time, but read all the books as well
- I want to have a killer career, but never get out of bed
- I also want a super healthy body, but never set foot in the gym
Easy, huh?
It took me years of conflict, to realize that yes, I can have it all. We can have it all; it’s all about balance. Give and take.
- Eat cake ever so often and not with each meal
- Stay in bed longer during weekends and not every day
- Visit the dreaded gym twice a week, not every day
- Read the self – development book with all the wonderful tips about time management – even if it is for 15 min in the evening. By the way, 15min is still a lot more than nothing!
Wouldn’t it be great if we could be in peace with our inner demons and the unfulfilled dreams and expectations, we all deal with? Let’s just be realistic for a moment, understand and respect the choices that led us to where we are today.
All we want is to be better isn’t it?
I cannot really decide which is more difficult: peace with ourselves or peace with the others? Peace inside would probably be a good starting point, I think.
We need to explore the middle ground that leaves enough room for both sides. When others are involved, we need to leave them room to breathe and maintain their self-respect. By all means, set a boundary but be equally prepared to respect the individuality of the other person – no matter what their role in your life.
I believe that the main idea, the underlying principle is to find our own personal position, our own personal happy place, the perfect analogy for our identity, our personality, our choices, our circumstances. To define the person we want to be and treasure it.
I would love to read your thoughts on this. Send me a reply if you would like to share.
Evgenia's Writing Atelier 