Three Simple Ways to Bring Balance to Your Life
By Guest Blogger, Nadia Koligman
The world around us is moving at an ever-increasing pace and this can make daily life feel like a chaotic three-ring circus. If your life seems like it’s spinning out of control and you’ve got an endless stream of demands pulling at you from every direction, it’s not surprising that you feel stressed-out, exhausted and overwhelmed.
Believe it or not, bringing a sense of balance back into your life doesn’t require massive changes. You won’t have to abandon your family, quit your job or relocate to a remote island in order to feel a sense of peace and happiness.
Having balance in your life is something that begins INSIDE of you and you can create it no matter what else is going on outside of you. By incorporating three simple but important elements into your daily life, you’ll not only regain a sense of equilibrium but you’ll also be able to function more effectively to meet the challenges you face each day.
Here are three simple ways to begin putting some balance and inner peace back into your life:
Element #1: Flexibility
Having rigid expectations is one of the major contributors to feelings of stress. We all do it from time to time. We get a mental image of how things “should be” and then we get angry and frustrated when they don’t turn out that way.
One of the best tools for bringing balance and peace back into your life is the ability to maintain a flexible frame of mind. Being flexible means letting go of rigid expectations and learning how to go with the flow.
When you’re in a flexible frame of mind, you’re able to deal with problems and crises much more easily because you’re not struggling against a preconceived notion of how things “should be.” You’re able to tap into your creative problem-solving skills and work through challenges without getting bogged down in all the frustration and emotional melodrama. You simply observe the results you’re getting, assess the situation, and then adjust your course accordingly.
Being flexible applies not just to your frame of mind, but also to how you manage your time and other resources. Take a look at your life circumstances and consider letting go of any obligations or routines that are no longer meaningful or enjoyable to you. For example, just because you agreed to run weekly discussion group meetings three years ago doesn’t mean you have to continue doing it forever. If it’s a drain on your time, energy or emotions then let it go.
To bring more balance into your life, be willing to let go of activities that no longer complement the lifestyle you really want. Doing so will create space in your life for those activities that bring you joy, fulfillment and peace.
Element #2: Quiet Time
When we’re super busy, one of the first things to get dropped off of our schedule is personal time. Instead we focus all of our energy and attention on caring for others, multi-tasking, handling urgencies, being productive and taking care of all of our important obligations. When we perpetually operate in this way, over time it depletes our energy, scatters our mental attention and leaves us feeling anxious, frustrated and burned out.
To begin living a more balanced life, it’s CRUCIAL to carve out quiet time for yourself. In fact the less time you think you have for “quiet time” the more important it is for you to MAKE time for it.
When you consistently make time for yourself, something amazing begins to happen. You’ll find yourself feeling less tired and frazzled, and more focused, energetic and productive. Spending just a few minutes each day sitting quietly in meditation, doing yoga, listening to some soothing music, going for a quiet walk in nature, or writing in a journal can go a long way towards transforming feelings of stress and overwhelm into clarity and peace.
Element #3: Self-Care
Self-care should always be part of your daily life but it’s particularly important to include it during times of stress, anxiety and overwhelm.
When you’re really tired or stressed out, even the smallest problem can seem like a major disaster. On the other hand, when you’re feeling centered and well-rested, you are much better able to handle set-backs and frustrations. A little strategic self-care can help prevent burnout and keep you functioning effectively during challenging times.
In addition to setting aside quiet time for yourself, there are many other ways to nurture and care for yourself on a daily basis. Make sure you get a solid seven to eight hours (or as much as you personally need) of sleep at night. Be sure to eat food that is nutritious as well as tasty. Drink plenty of water. Get plenty of fresh air and exercise. Speak kindly to yourself. Keep in touch with people who lift your spirits and make you laugh. Surround yourself with colors, patterns, fragrances and items that are pleasing to you and make you feel happy.
Caring for yourself on a regular basis will replenish your energy, bring you a sense of calm and inner peace, and provide the focus and stamina you need to handle whatever comes your way.
If you start incorporating these three simple but powerful elements into your daily actions and you’ll begin to shift your life from stress, anxiety and overwhelm to clarity, serenity and balance. Your problems aren’t necessarily going to disappear but you’ll be able to handle whatever life throws at you with a lot more effectiveness and ease.
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About Nadia
Nadia Koligman is a life design strategist, author, blogger and the founder of Dreamnautics Media. Her passion is to help people re-engineer their lives to be more personally meaningful, fulfilling and in alignment with who they really are. To learn more and get a free copy of her special report “12 Powerful Ways to Boost Your Life Quality” please visit www.dreamnautics.com.
You can also find Nadia on:
www.twitter.com/nadiakoligman
www.adventuresinlifedesign.com
30 Minute “Exploration” Session.
Self-Care is a big item for me. I was reading a favorite blog of mine, Married with Luggage, and one item stood out for me—“Choosing one thing over another always comes with some kind of gain and some kind of loss; that’s why it is a choice. You can’t get away from this, so stop trying to have it all and have what you want most.”
We are always choosing one thing over the other—it is time we started to choose what we want most and cut out what is not as important to us.
Taking the time to exercise, meditate, meet with friends, take a long warm bath (self care)—those things are important to me—so it is time to start removing the clutter of our lives and start living what is most important to us.