A desire for balance.
A desire for balance has always been at the heart of my life and business. Whilst I adore connecting with clients and actively sharing my work with the world I also relish the quiet times in my day and life, such as having cuddles with my pets and tending to my flower and vegetable garden.
I’d envisioned my life being a perfect mix of work, rest and play. I seem to have a lot of projects on the go, which is how I like it (right now it’s my animal work, coaching work, creative projects, music and teaching / training) so there are a lot of elements to balance.
Life is like a garden.
I see life like a garden, and envisioned mine as a thriving, beautiful cottage style garden. There would be a blend of evergreen shrubs (on going projects that tick over unobtrusively in the background), diva-esque flowers (projects that blaze in a short but sweet burst of glory), summer bedding ( summer music events), successional salads (repeated events and projects) all happily intermingling, no doubt with new projects that I’ll also squeeze in the gaps – ask any good gardener, we always find room for one more good plant.
Yet, I have to confess that my life may not be the well balanced, beautifully tended garden that I had planned and I bet I’m not the only one.
Getting out of balance.
Most people will find, at some stage in their lives that one life area or project can take over and eclipse other important things. That’s ok if it’s a short term project or issue, but in the long term there can be a domino effect on other areas of your life.
For example, if you are looking after sick parents, the strain on work and social relationships starts to really show after a few months. You can get tired and overwhelmed easily. It’s a time where extra self care and support may be required. A new job can seem all encompassing at first, demanding a lot of time, energy and attention.
Even happy occurrences, such as new relationships, can divert us from hobbies or social activities. We may not even notice.
My message from my garden.
For me, my garden itself was the messenger in this instance. I had created a new raised bed in the spring and sown a mix of annual wildflowers, all to attract bees. I then forgot about it and got caught up in other projects. I’m sure I had a vague awareness of seedlings sprouting, and later saw them grow. Then suddenly, I was looking out on a sea of yellow, just yellow.
Last weekend I finally got a chance to have a proper look. It seems that my ‘wildflower mix’ has turned into a monoculture of oil seed rape – and it was about to set seed.
As I don’t fancy the same again next year, I started cutting it back. Luckily there was still some purple Phacelia underneath and even some mallow seedlings.
As I cut back the yellow tide, I was inspired to make this week’s blog and video, on this theme (and I was also inspired to look at where else in my life and work elements may be out of balance).
This week’s video.
Tips to regain balance in your life.
1. Become actively aware of the issue and acknowledge that something is out of balance.
For me, that was noticing the sea of yellow.
2. Plan your course of action, short term and / or long term.
For me it was seeing that as it was about to set seed I had to act fast.
3. Take some action.
As that sea of yellow was not going to go away, not matter how hard I stared at it – even my best Paddington Bear hard stare wouldn’t have done the trick – I got to work, cutting it back.
4. Assess and monitor the impact of your actions.
I’ll be checking to see if letting more light in encourages other plants to grow.
5. Take more action if required.
In autumn I’ll probably sow a winter cover crop to ensure the ground doesn’t get weedy, which it could do if left bare.
6. I also highly recommend giving yourself good mental and emotional support to help you regain your balance – EFT tapping being one of my favourite support tools.
If you prefer techniques such as meditation or mindfulness, use them. Do whatever it takes to start re-balancing from the inside out.
Many times, by clearing out upset, worry or fear it then becomes easier to both assess the situation and take action.
Final thoughts.
For me, I’ll be looking more closely at my life and work balance now, using that sea of yellow as a great reminder of what can happen when we lose sight of what’s happening under our own noses.
I’ve already noticed that whilst I’ve been focusing on training courses and events, I haven’t been creating blog posts and videos regularly (apologies for that readers and viewers) and if I’d been spending more time in the garden I probably would have noticed that sea of yellow sooner. So, there may be some adjustments to make to get my garden, literally and metaphorically, into more harmonious balance.
How about you?
Are there some areas in your life that have gone out of kilter and need some re-balancing?
If so, follow the actionable tips above and tend to your emotional and mental well-being and you’ll start to get back on track.
If you’d like some extra support, you can schedule a free 15 minute consultation with me where we can explore how best to help you to re-balance on all levels, so your life becomes rosy, blooming and harmonious once more.
Sorry, comments are closed for this post.