WELLBEING? Does Balance Mean Giving Everything Equal Time?
A day can be uneven and still be part of a balanced life. I reflect on how to give each area of wellbeing the attention it needs.
WELLBEING?
WELLBEING? Does Balance Mean Giving Everything Equal Time?
If I look at any one day of my life, I can usually find something out of balance. I may spend most of the day working and have very little time to read, exercise, or speak to someone I care about. Does that mean I have lived badly that day? I do not think so. A great deal depends on what happens the next day, and on whether the same things keep getting left out.
In my earlier post, I asked how well I should live. Once I have some idea of what is good enough in each area of wellbeing, I face a practical question: how do I make room for all of them? Physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, social, occupational, and financial wellbeing all deserve attention. I see no reason why they should all receive the same number of hours.
I can go for a walk most mornings because that is a rhythm I can maintain. I can look at my finances less often, provided I do so before something needs urgent attention. And when I make time for a conversation with someone I care about, what matters may be how well I listen, rather than how long we speak.
Some activities serve more than one area. A walk with a friend gives me exercise and companionship. But I can also be so preoccupied with work that I spend the whole walk thinking about a problem and barely listen. That is one limit of measuring wellbeing by hours: I can account for the time without noticing how I spent it.
I find it more useful to look back over a week, and sometimes over a month. If work took more of my time because I had made a promise to finish something, I may be quite happy with that choice. But if I keep saying I will get back to my walks or call someone once work settles down, I have to ask when I expect that to happen. I can wait for a quieter week, or I can make a little room in the week I actually have.
For me, balance means that each area gets the care it needs often enough. Some things can wait. What I want to notice is when the same thing is always asked to wait.
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