Elusive Balance
I’m working on four client projects right now while also writing a screenplay and training a new team member.
Balance seems elusive. Balancing time in the digital realm with the physical realm is the most difficult when I’m in the midst of a learning, creating, or developing sprint.
But is this a problem?
How much balance is actually required to live a fulfilling life?
And is it more effective to think of balance over the long term, rather than the short term? Similar to how you’d think about investing.
I grew up watching my parents work their asses off running a vineyard and winery. And I didn’t see a hell of a lot of balance.
I saw hard work. And lots of it.
Maybe too much hard work. They weren’t great at delegating. But they were great at putting in the time and striving for excellence.
Now as a digital creator and strategist, I’ve had to learn that hard work isn’t always the answer. I have to force myself to think outside the work-hard box, which is difficult. When a behaviour is ingrained in your psyche since childhood, it’s extremely difficult to let it go.
But hard work isn’t always the best way to move the needle in a business or creative project.
Sometimes it is. Sometimes you have to put in the hours to learn the new strategy or make the tiny (or massive) changes required to get things to the next stage.
But other times, you need to step back, go for a walk, take a hammock break, or learn how to hire someone.
Sometimes you need to allow inspiration a moment to break through the clouds and rain sparkling rays of iridescent creativity down upon you.
Sometimes you need to look at a strategy and say to yourself, “This isn’t worth it. Let’s not!”
As someone who craves learning new things and plenty of creative time, balance means that I need to give myself execution and learning tasks. If I don’t do that, then work life becomes un-fun.
So while I still don’t have the answer to how to find balance in life, I’m working on it.
Right now, my balance strategies are as follows:
1) Go for 1-2 walks outside per day. Sometimes when it’s raining I have to MAKE myself do this. Perhaps I should buy a better rain jacket.
2) Get off the computer by 5 pm each day, most, but not all days. As a night owl this is hard.
3) Give myself time to learn new things every day.
4) Don’t take on new shiny projects before completing one existing project.
5) Take time to eat dinner with Jimmy (almost) every day.
6) Give myself creative time in the mornings before tackling client strategies.
7) New one: read books instead of watch shows because I feel more rested after reading.
8) Keep training my amazing new team member so she can take on more responsibility at a higher level!
9) Plan vacations. Duh, but this one wasn’t obvious to me until recently.
I know I’m moving in the right direction because, over the past few months, I’ve been able to heal many things in my body that had been “acting up.”
But I also know that the Protestant Work Ethic always seems to be there buzzing away, trying to get me to work 15-hour days, 7 days per week.
That’s why one of my main projects is the Radian Living Project. In order to trick the inner workaholic into taking care of her health, I’ve turned it into a project. I know that I don’t want to sacrifice health just to achieve some elusive milestone.
As I’m writing this and thinking about balance, it occurs to me that it might be more useful to think about REST rather than balance. It’s easier to measure rest. It’s something you could conceivably stick a number on.
“I got 2 hours of rest today!”
Yes. Makes sense. Measurable = doable.
Whereas, balance is not so easy to measure, and definitely not “doable.” Which is perhaps why it feels elusive.
“I’m going to go do balance now!”
Nope, not a thing.
OK, new practice: start paying attention to REST.
…to be continued…
-Colette Nichol-
