As I write this article focusing on balance, the Summer Olympics are taking place in Japan. I am in awe of these elite athletes’ achievements. What was it that they discovered at an early age that gave them the confidence to pursue their Olympic dream? How did they know they had what it takes to rise to the top in any 28 sports or 38 disciplines? I wonder at the super-human drive it must take to push themselves to such heights. How can we mere mortals aspire to feats beyond our physical and mental capacity?
Out of all the hundreds of things we do as busy professional women, wives, mothers, caregivers, and business owners, we have to choose how to balance our priorities. We have to decide what absolutely must get done, what we’d like to check off our list, and what can wait until we get around to it. We achieve balance by setting priorities and boundaries. We have to hold our boundaries firm to maintain balance in our lives.
I’m a very ordinary woman who has never had Olympic dreams. I’ve never been very athletic as a kid; usually picked last for any sport. I vividly remember in 7th grade making the 7th/8th-grade girl’s softball team. But then, our school was so small, and there were fewer than six girls in the 8th-grade. I had an outfield position. Somewhere I could do the least damage as I couldn’t catch or throw. Our local priest commented on how he was praying no balls would come my way so that I wouldn’t embarrass myself or the team. Getting better at softball was not a goal for me, and I decided early on that it wasn’t my sport.
While I am not an athlete, I can understand deciding on a goal and creating an environment to support the outcome you want. For instance, to get more exercise, you may buy comfortable shoes that make daily walks enjoyable. Or, with a focus n eating healthy, deciding to enroll in a cooking class to learn become adept at giving old favorites a more nutritious tweak. Starting in small ways gives you a chance at big wins later on. Beginning with bite-size, manageable chunks of change also aides you to be consistent in those behavior shifts. You will be less likely to be overwhelmed by sweeping change.
Did you ever want to do something so badly you had to change your whole life around to accomplish it?
Let’s take the balance beam, for example. That sport fascinates me. How does she manage to do all those jumps and flips on something that is only four inches wide? Practice? I’m sure it’s much, much more than just practice. It takes hours and hours at the gym to learn the basics and progressing to more complicated maneuvers. It takes discipline, conviction, confidence, pride, persistence, perseverance, determination, guts, and gumption. And those are qualities we all have to have to realize any of our goals.
The question is, what do we do when we fall off our balance beam in our daily life? I recently missed a couple of zoom appointments and was very disappointed in my juggling skills. I had to take a step back and revisit my priorities. I had to address my boundaries and why I wasn’t holding firm to them. I had to ask myself was I saying “yes” too often so that I didn’t disappoint anyone, or did I honestly believe agreeing to that call was the right thing to do?
Does that sound like familiar territory?
It’s that “good girl” syndrome again. Our wanting to be nice and wanting to be fair. However, not at our expense.
After apologizing and rescheduling the missed appointments, I sat down with myself and looked at how I could make an Olympic-minded agreement around priorities and boundaries.
“Balance is not better time management,” businesswoman Betsy Jacobson tells us, “but better boundary management. Balance means making choices and enjoying those choices.”
I vow to pay close attention to my choices and hold firm my boundaries. I want to enjoy my choices. To do just that, I’ve come up with a strategy where I give myself permission to check in with me before committing to anything in my life, from an invitation to speak to a fun girlfriend getaway.
Here’s how I check in:
I will…
1. Be sure that I have all the specifics when I’m responding to a request.
2. Allow time to assess whether this is a should do, must do, a maybe, or not right now.
3. Examine my current commitments to be sure I’m not overscheduling myself.
4. Have compassion for myself and remember that I can’t comply with every request, and sometimes the only answer I can give is no.
5. Review electronic and paper calendars daily to track all my commitments.
Over the years, I’ve taken course after course and signed up with various coaches to learn writing techniques and best business practices. Despite the level of skill and the variety of tools at the disposal of anyone I sought help from, it came down to what I alone was willing to do to help myself. What was I willing to do to empower me?
I can only imagine the discipline it takes to become an Olympic athlete.
I know what it takes to empower me to have an Olympic mindset and strive for balance in all my choices. I hope I have given you a suggestion to help you find balance and to live a life unleashed.
Achieve Balance with Olympic Style Boundaries
RHG MagazineTM - September 2021 © All rights reserved.
shoes that make daily walks enjoyable. Or, with a focus n eating healthy, deciding to enroll in a cooking class to learn become adept at giving old favorites a more nutritious tweak. Starting in small ways gives you a chance at big wins later on. Beginning with bite-size, manageable chunks of change also aides you to be consistent in those behavior shifts. You will be less likely to be overwhelmed by sweeping change.
Did you ever want to do something so badly you had to change your whole life around to accomplish it?
Let’s take the balance beam, for example. That sport fascinates me. How does she