By Jeff Hough
Balance—you hear about the need to have work/life balance all the time. Yet, balance is hard to find and even harder to keep. The problem is that achievement requires a measure of imbalance.
Consider pursuing mastery in a chosen field. Mastery comes at a price; there are sacrifices to make, imbalances to endure. If you subscribe to the 10,000-hour rule (the concept that mastery of anything requires 10,000 hours of practice), then you must realize imbalances will occur.
For the complacent, balance appears easy to achieve. They get up, go to work, return home, take part in some type of relaxing activity then go to bed. Rinse and repeat. Balance found, yet true happiness is missing. Going through the motions may appear to bring balance; yet, nothing could be further from the truth. Living life to the fullest requires periods of imbalance and discomfort.
Whether you are pursuing an individual or a team goal, imbalance occurs. The trick to achieving equilibrium between imbalance and balance is finding healthy ways to cope—call it touching center.
Touching center occurs when pursuing a goal with single-minded focus and you pause. In the moments of pause you return to center and find temporary balance. Touching center requires healthy habits to ground and restore your drive.
Examples of healthy habits are eating good meals, exercising, reading or meditating. These habits can fit into any schedule and be practiced anywhere. The goal is to establish habits for things that matter to you. By participating in healthy habits, you give your mind and body a break.
Such habits return you to center and remind you of what matters to your soul. Losing touch with what matters turns into tunnel vision, which leads to an unhealthy imbalance. Tunnel vision is bad because it stifles creativity and causes stagnation.
As technology becomes a greater part of existence, it is easy for work to intertwine with life. Is that a bad thing? Can work and life co-exist in a harmonious balance? The answer to that question lies in your overall vision for yourself.
Many work to live while others live to work. Neither perspective is completely healthy and true happiness lies somewhere in between. Productivity, creativity and accomplishment each come from showing up every day and being an active participant. Being an active participant in the growth process requires imbalance.
Healthy imbalance is moving beyond comfort zones and pushing yourself into discomfort.
During those moments when you touch center, balance and energy renew. Your mind becomes your ally rather than your master; head and heart align with purpose.
In the end, balance is necessary as a resting point, but not for progress. If your work environment is a fragile balancing act, it is time to seek the imbalance which moves you forward. If you find yourself feeling out of balance, it is time to discover the healthy habits that work for you. Once established, these habits help you touch center and maintain a healthy equilibrium between balance and imbalance.
Jeff Hough is a business author, blogger and speaker in Pocatello.
