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By
Kathleen Barton
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Do you feel burdened with too many
responsibilities and not enough time for personal
enjoyment? Is so, then you are not alone. According to
Schor, the author of The Overworked American, hours
worked have risen 20% and leisure hours have declined
37% since 1970. With two-career families and
single-parent households on the rise, it’s no wonder we
feel overloaded, overextended, and even overwhelmed. The
key to avoiding this is to create balance in our lives.
What is Balance??
Balance is managing your various roles, activities and
responsibilities in a way the results in harmony between
your personal and professional life. This requires that
we take care of ourselves. We all need some private time
– time to do something for ourselves that renews and
refreshes us. For some, this may be golfing or
gardening. For others, this may be painting or reading.
Those who take leisure time are more effective in their
various roles in life. They are less stressed and
experience greater peace and harmony. |
How to Achieve Balance
You can’t do it all! The notion that you can do it all
is a fallacy. Therefore, you need to focus on the most
important things. Achieving balance and harmony involves
a three-step process:
1. Determine what’s most important
First determine what is most important to you. Take some
time to think about your priorities. What are the most
important things in life? Make a list. Think of “things”
in a broad sense. They could be tangible things such as
a nice house, or intangible, such as a happy family.
2. Prioritize
Review your list of important things. Which are most
critical? Draw an asterisk next to the five most
important things. The next step involves the difficult
task of prioritizing your top five in priority order (1
through 5).
3. Determine how to spend your time
Once you determine what’s most important, then determine
how to spend your time based upon your priorities. Most
people do not keep their priorities in mind as they go
about their activities each week. Look at your calendar
or schedule for the past week. How did you spend your
time? Look at your top five most important priorities.
Are these two aligned? For most people the answer is
“no”. If that’s the case, then you need to make some
changes. Sometimes this means saying “no” to other
activities. If you are letting other less important
activities get in the way, then you are not honoring
your priorities.
Where are your priorities and your time out of
alignment? Where do you need to spend more time? Where
do you need to spend less time? Set a goal for yourself.
Maybe you’d like to take 2 hours on the weekend just for
you – to do anything you want. Take action and track
your progress. By aligning your time with your
priorities, you will experience greater peace, harmony
and balance in your life.
Kathleen Barton is a keynote speaker,
workshop presenter, and coach who heads her own firm,
The Success Connection. She can be reached at
www.the-success-connection.com.
Article Source:
http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Kathleen_Barton
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