Why isn’t balance working?
The idea of balance seems to suggest that all aspects of life are weighted equally and we should evenly split our time and energy between all areas of life in order to achieve balance.
Balance involves careful calculations to determine what areas are heavier and therefore need more time and energy, while also factoring in that life is constantly changing, and just because one area weighs more doesn’t necessarily deem it more important.
This isn’t practical and it’s honestly a little overcomplicated. Harmony is the new balance. Harmony is the simplified sister of balance.
How to determine what needs attention.
Harmony is taking the time to assess the areas of your life that need more attention. The way we decide this is by taking a look at how fulfilled each area of our life is feeling to us.
Use a life wheel to get a visual of this.
In our life wheel, we will rate how fulfilled we feel in each area of our life from 1-10 (1 being the least fulfilled, 10 being completely fulfilled).
The 6 areas to rate are Home, Love, Spirit, Self, Family, and Work.
Download the Daily Joy Planner and find a Life Inventory Wheel on page 2.
Setting harmonious goals.
Seeing what needs attention and giving it intentional attention are 2 different things. Take the lowest rated area of life and decide what can be done to raise that rating. Set a SMART goal to achieve this.
A SMART goal is one that is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound.
Learning to let go.
As we’re giving more attention to our least fulfilled areas of life, take time to assess how much energy you’re giving to the areas you are more fulfilled in. Are you giving unnecessary attention and time to things that don’t need it as much?
Let go of some of the habits you’ve clung to that aren’t actually serving you or moving you forward any more. These things are time and energy wasters. Harmony doesn’t mean adding more to your plate, it’s making substitutions so that all areas of your life can feel at peace.
How mindfulness encourages harmony.
Grow a habit of weekly reflection. Take the time to reassess what you’re doing to determine what’s working and what’s not. Life is constantly changing and requires our constant reflection and adjustments.
Taking life inventory isn’t a one-time-solves-all exercise, it’s a new mindset, a new lifestyle, and growing new habits. Life is always changing and what we do needs to adjust to that.
Brittni Clarkson 