KATHY ARCHER
  • Home
  • Membership
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Coaching
  • Confidence Book
  • About
  • Contact Me
  • Free Worksheets

Achieving Work-Life Balance: Understanding the difference between Balanced and Balancing.

26/8/2019

0 Comments

 
YOUR QUESTION:

Kathy, How do I create work-life balance? 
  • I tend to find myself spending days immersed in my work, and neglect my family and friends.
  • Have you ever gone through anything similar? How do you cope?
​
MY ANSWER:
You need to focus on BALANCE rather than BALANCING - Learn how below.
Picture

We talk about work-life balance as if it's a static thing: BALANCED.
​
But work and life are not static things. They are ever-changing. We need to move with the ebb and flow of work and life, rather than trying to stop the scales of balance dead in the middle. We need to practice BALANCING!

Has your balance ever got out of balance like mine?
As you know, last week, my newest granddaughter Paisley was born. Subsequently, things in my whole life went out a whack. 

To be honest, though, I wanted to resist it. I wanted to re-establish static BALANCE, ASAP!
  • I like order. 
  • I love my routines. 
  • I like to know what to expect. 
  • And to be honest, I like to be very much in control of all of that!


I wasn't in control anymore!
Gone was controlling my world, though, especially if I wanted to honour my values.
  • I strongly value family.
  • I also value excellence.
That means I want to be an excellent mom and grandma. You don't get do-overs of baby's births. There is only one shot!

But here is what I learned last week. Or maybe re-learned. 
The lesson I learned was during challenging times, to move with the chaos of what is happening, rather than trying to stop everything right in the middle.

QUICK PRACTICAL EXERCISE TO UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN "BALANCED" AND "BALANCING":

STEP 1:         Stand on one foot. 
                      Find a point of BALANCED. You can't. You will be moving back and forth if every so slightly BALANCING.

STEP 2:         Still on one foot, lean to one side. Just a tiny bit at first, then so far that you have to put your foot down
                      else, you'll fall over.

STEP 3:         Think, what was the "tipping point?"

Your core strength matters!
Of course, your physical capacity and your core strength will impact how good you are at balancing and when you tip over. The way to get good at BALANCING is to strengthen your muscles, especially those in your core! So it is with balancing work and life.

Your nonphysical core
Your nonphysical core is knowing and understanding how to honour your values in life. Your core in life is about knowing what keeps you in integrity, who your true supports are and what hills you'll die on. It is also about having your fundamentals of wellness down pat.

****Just a little reminder - to strengthen this core of you, you'll need to do the inner work that I'm always reminding you about! 

Lesson from the exercise? You'll never be BALANCED, but always BALANCING.


Last week, I had to practice BALANCING.
In truth, I leaned way over to one side, the family side of my life and I held myself out there for a few days. I reprioritized my schedule.
  • Rather than building a course, I was changing diapers.
  • Rather than putting on a webinar, I was helping my daughter reposition a lazy nurser.
  • Rather than coaching you, I was enjoying watching Paisley's dad whisper in her ear about how much he loved her!


Leaning too far!
But at some point, probably earlier this week, I felt myself leaning too far that way. I felt myself almost tipping over. I'd been there for my daughter and her family. I'd done what was needed but wasn't needed there in that way anymore. And, I'd started to feel the tug of not just work again, but also of my wellness that had got neglected. 
  • My focus on healthy eating had slipped.
  • I wasn't hitting my 10,000 step goal every day. 
  • I was tired and needed some extra rest. 
  • I'd missed meditating a few days.


Leaning back the other way
So earlier this week, I started my lean back the other way. It was a bit wobbly at first. When you jerk too quickly, you tend to fall over also. But as the week has progressed, I've found myself shifting back and forth closer to the centre. I feel in more control of my life.
​

We are always BALANCING
This back and forth, though is a constant. Writing proposals, working through accreditation, traveling to training and setting up new offices have all pulled me to the work side of work-life balance, frequently in my career. 

When I lacked the strength in my core, was when I tipped too far and fell into the void of never-ending work. Too frequently, this was at the cost of my family and health. Now, I know to come back to my core. Its this understanding and this foundational piece that helped me and will help you, continue to be good at BALANCING!

p.s. Help strengthen your core! Get really clear on your values and how they show up in your life. Here's some help to get you started, validating what's important to you!
Picture

Ongoing training to grow women leaders in ​🇨🇦 Canada's Nonprofit Organizations.

​Not a member of The Training Library yet? 
​
​Join for $19.97 and enjoy a monthly webinar plus a library of courses to support your ongoing personal and professional development that is affordable and easily accessible!

Discover the details here
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Join the membership

    Picture

    Listen to the podcasts

    Picture

    Read the book

    Books for Nonprofit leaders
    Available on Amazon


    Kathy Archer

    Women leaders often hit a point where they find themselves in over their heads and wondering if they have what it takes to lead.
    ​
    ​In my online courses and coaching I teach them inner and outer tools to restore their lost confidence so they can move from surviving to thriving in both leadership and life.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015

    Categories

    All
    Conflict Resolution
    Courage & Confidence
    Emotional Intelligence
    Employee Development
    Goal Setting
    Health And Wellness
    Leadership
    Mastery
    Mindfulness At Work
    Personal Growth & Development
    Priority Management
    Productivity
    Project Management
    Shifting Perspectives
    Shifting PerspectivesShifting Perspectives
    Supervision

    RSS Feed

Picture

For you:

About Me
​
Join The Training Library membership
Get Coaching
​
Join the Confident Women Leaders Free Community
Free Resources
​Privacy Policy
The Training Library 
Imagine getting the training  you need, when you need it most. Find that in the membership

Join the Membership

Picture

Search the Website


Resources

Mastering Confidence: 
Discover your leadership potential by awakening your inner guidance system 
Picture
Surviving to Thriving Podcast: Strategies, systems and support to lead with confidence
Picture
  • Home
  • Membership
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Coaching
  • Confidence Book
  • About
  • Contact Me
  • Free Worksheets