BALANCE

BALANCE

I've come to realize that happiness and satisfaction come with balance. You need to have all phases of your life in balance. I've heard it said that life is a juggling act. I don't think so. I think of it more as a balancing act.

I would say there are five main parts of your life - they are the RELATIONAL, the SPIRITUAL, the FINANCIAL, the INTELLECTUAL and the PHYSICAL. Think of these as legs of a table. To have a really good table, all the legs must be the same length. Don't short change any of them. Each one of these phases is equally important. We all know people who spend an inordinate amount of time on one or the other of these phases. If you concentrate solely on one or the other of these phases, you can build it up. But I don't think that necessarily brings you happiness. We all know well-to-do people who are not happy. We all know bookworm nerds. We all know fitness freaks. Only when we have all phases in synch, are we really happy.

The RELATIONAL part of your life is very important to us humans. Everyone needs a spouse or best friend and a network of friends. Its a basic human need. Good friends affirm that what you are doing is right. They can smooth out the rough spots in the other legs. Happy, congenial, sharing relationships are a must. Work at it.

The SPIRITUAL part of your life is one that you cannot turn your back to. This is a special relationship that you need to foster. I think it is a basic human need and it infuses us with a feeling of wellbeing. In the very end, its the one phase that will matter most. Nurture it.

The FINANCIAL part of your life is also important. Too little wealth will drag you down and too much time spent on acquiring wealth will take away from the other phases of your life. If all phases of your life are fulfilled, wealth will come. Think positively about money. Concentrate on what you have instead of what you don't have. Control it.

The INTELLECTUAL part of your life is one that many people seem to ignore. You can't stop seeking knowledge when you are finished with school. Sure, every day is a learning opportunity but you should do better than that. Take positive action to learn something new. Keep that 3 lbs working. You'll never know it all. Seek it.

The PHYSICAL part of your life supports most of the other phases of your life. Its not vain to want to stay in shape. Your body is a machine. Take care of it. Work it. Feed it. Maintain it. Be good to it and it will be good to you. Love it.

The trick is to keep your table level. Each of these phases of your life need to be brought up to meet the others. Live at a high level.

Now, take a self survey. Rate your table legs. Which ones need to brought higher?