Finding Balance

Finding
balance is something many of
us strive to achieve in our busy, stress-filled lives. Brandon and I cannot say
definitely that we have created or found balanced lives. We can share that finding your balance
means recognizing there are times when you need to take a step back, then there
are times to be all-in pursuing your goals and dreams. 

Importance of a Balanced Life

Brandon took a hiatus from Beyond the Rut and
a few other activities in his life during the summer of 2018. Life’s activities
were pulling him in multiple directions at the same time. This episode of
Beyond the Rut podcast shares with you how you can find balance in life by sharing insights he
gained during his time off.

Without finding balance among work and life, your productivity
drops. Your impact drops whether that is at the office or at home with your loved
ones. If you have ever found yourself overwhelmed with life events while at the
office, you need to find some balance in life. If you find yourself checking your work email
while you are attending your children’s school events, you need to find some balance in life.

What is a Work Life Balance?

There is a growing acceptance that there is no such thing as finding balance. Life is chaotic and you just have to hold on for the ride in a sense.

When you dig deeper into that belief, you find
that it comes from (1) accepting that life is chaotic and demanding and (2) you
have to decide what is most important to you in that moment and put your focus
there.

Isn’t that the same thing as “finding balance?”

We seem to think that finding balance is about finding some kind of zen-like,
relaxed state where nothing bothers you. That is not how we would describe it at
all.

Elements of a Balanced Life

Work takes up about a third of our days. A
trade is made for that time and our work in exchange for a paycheck that is
then used for those five areas mentioned above.

The problem with finding balance is that we often let work take over our lives. There are the 8 hours we often exchange Monday through Friday. On top of that, we commit to at least 5 hours each week to a commute for that job assuming a 30-minute commute time each way. If you’ve worked through your 1-hour lunch break regular, there is another 5 hours a week. Consider the time spent preparing your clothes for work whether you do the laundry yourself, or use a dry cleaner.

At Beyond the Rut, we believe there are
multiple of circles that are important to your life. We list the Big Five as
the following:

* Faith – your spiritual
life* Fitness – taking care
of yourself physically and emotionally* Family – your most
important relationships* Finances – your means
to take care of those most important to you and to do what is most important to
you.* Furthering your
personal and professional development – this is basically the work you do and
we really wanted that alliteration to happen.

Work is important. It’s how we create the income
for the Five F’s. The trick is to first identify what is most important, and
say no to the rest. Your time is the one resource you have that is not abundant.
Many things can either be reduced, removed, or delegated.

Questions to help you find balance in life

* What