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BOUNDARIES ARE KEY ELEMENTS OF A BALANCED LIFE

As we explore the elements of a balanced life, the essentials to having your passions in harmony, we need to first look at boundaries.  Boundaries are important for you to maintain the right focus on your priorities, whatever they may be. Before we jump into boundaries, let me explain what I think a balanced life looks like.  

5 ELEMENTS OF A BALANCED LIFE

When your life is balanced you feel fulfilled about the things you do and about who you are. You don’t feel overwhelmed when unexpected things crop up. You understand your true passions and you are living with those passions in harmony. In order to live a balanced life, try to use the following five element and apply them to your own life. Awareness While it is important to plan for the future, you do need to be aware of what is happening in your life right now. Awareness is the first element you need to develop. When your life is balanced it means that you are aware of your current situation. It does not mean being obsessed with what the future might hold. It also means letting go of the past. Being aware allows you to make good decisions and choices, giving you fewer regrets later on. Good Health The next element is taking care of your body and your overall health. You need to be grateful for what you have and you need to take care of yourself to maintain this. When you are tired you can’t be at your best, so this element also includes learning to relax and rest. If your body is not balanced then neither will your life be balanced. Creativity Of all the elements of a balanced life, creativity is perhaps one of the most important. No one can escape the challenges of life and relationships. When you can learn to deal with these challenges by incorporating your creativity into solving or overcoming them, you are well on the way to having a balanced life.     [Tweet “Boundaries are important for you to maintain the right focus on your priorities, whatever they may be.”]     Patience Your next element is the one of patience. This can be difficult for many people to develop. By developing patience as a regular habit, it will help you deal with almost any challenge, problem and issue that life loves to throw at you. Developing patience improves your own life and that of your spouse’s and your children. Learn how to not react immediately and quite often a little humor can diffuse any situation. Simplification Our lives are totally complicated and by simplifying them you can easily balance things out more. Try to think of what you must have in your life and do away with unnecessary things. Pick and choose what is important to you and your family in order to live a happy and fulfilled life.  

SETTING BOUNDARIES

Now that you understand the elements of a balanced life, boundaries become important to make them all work.  If you are like me, you have diverse passions.  You enjoy engaging with those passions because they fulfill you and give your life meaning. For many of us, work is a passion in our lives.  We spend at least one-third of our life engaged in this passion.  It is easy to allow it to overcome and creep into the other parts of our lives. Perhaps you can relate to this scenario… Your boss approaches you and asks you to complete an assignment in a day. It is the type of assignment that usually takes people a week to complete. At the same time , your passion and expertise have made you are the go-to person for your team.  Your colleagues turn to you when they have challenges. It takes time for you to explain the answers to their questions and you feel obligated to take the time to help them out. That’s what being on a team is all about.   Other people from different departments start looking to you for answers to their questions. You can’t get your regular work completed let alone the new tasks that your boss throws your way. It’s great to help people out. It is what team members are supposed to do. However, you need to set some boundaries. In some cases, this means saying no to certain requests, even if those requests come from your boss. Remind your boss of your other tasks and ask which ones hold the highest priority if you can’t say no. When confronting your boss, you have to be diplomatic. You will be putting in extra hours if you aren’t. Hours that will take you away from your other passions and priorities.  Your work-life balance will be off balance in favor of work. Suggest they come back after you complete high-priority tasks. Get people to learn what you know so that they won’t rely on you all of the time. You will never have a home life if you are taking care of everyone else’s needs and not your own. It will be an adjustment for other people when you set boundaries. However, they will get used to it as long as you are firm. You aren’t shunning people. You are just making sure your work gets done and freeing up some time for your other priorities. Don’t feel guilty about doing this. You have the right, and you need to have time for yourself and your family. It will make you more productive which means you’ll be that much more helpful.  

WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE

When you have an have your passions in harmony and incorporate these elements of a balanced life,  you should always be:

• Content with your present circumstance
• Able to take emotionally weather any type of challenge life tosses your way
• Have an assurance that your passions and priorities are aligned
• Be satisfied with the individual that you are

So now it is your turn to begin developing balance in your life.  Are you ready to get started?

 

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