Have you noticed the heightened creativity and imagination that naturally shows up when children play? And the endless energy and joy that kids have when they’re having fun? Why do we stop playing as adults?
Life demands our attention, and it can become exhausting trying to balance it all.
I’ve been asked, “How do you balance life?” My reply is, “What is balance?” Mathematically, an equation is balanced when everything is exactly the same on each side of an equation. When is everything in life exactly as it should be? Never. Haven’t we all tried to balance life before? My experience has been that something is always out of balance. I need to spend more time working out, or food prepping, or more time with my family. And trying to stand on the metaphoric see-saw of the categories of my life and control where my weight goes to stay in balance takes a lot of focus, time and energy.
Here’s why I don’t strive to be in balance anymore. Balance looks at the parts of life as if they’re separate categories each sitting on a see-saw that requires constant attention. Separating the parts of life means each performs on its own, each is the sum of itself, nothing more. The categories of life—spiritual, family, career, friendships, health and recreation–to keep all of that in balance, not only am I doing all of those things (grocery shopping, family time, working out, going to work), I’m constantly trying to stay on this see saw to keep everything balanced—if that’s even possible?
What if there were a way to live more integrated? What if the categories of our lives are actually all integrated, and we’re the ones trying to keep them compartmentalized? What if instead of thinking of each part separately you began to see them as integrated, allowing them to synergize with one another, the whole being greater than the sum of the parts? What does that even look like?
What if you took a vacation and because you were in a state of rest your mind created solutions to the big problems at work—play and work integrating to bring solution. What if vacations (which I now call creative trips) were actually integrated into your budget because of the benefit they provide?
Where can you start synergizing the parts of your life with one another? Where can you integrate instead of balancing—get one part going, let it synergize with another part to create momentum?
Want another example? What’s your relationship with food, eating and movement? Health is an area where you can create momentum and experience the benefits of a strong body. When you have more energy, better quality movement, better sleep, and improved moods you’re likely to feel better, have more mental acuity and enjoy life more!
What’s your relationship with yourself? Mindset is another area where you can create momentum and experience the benefits of improved emotional well-being, healthier boundaries and better relationships that will carry over into all areas of your life.
Where can you begin integrating life to create synergy? If you’ve never taken a creative trip and feel that may be your next step in creating synergy, let’s talk!