Balance

Do You Feel As If Your Life Off-Balance?

posted by: Deana Hudson

Millions of Americans live their life off balance, lurching from one event to the next, but it may not be as bad as it seems.

According to a study by the Families and Work Institute, a third of U.S. employees are chronically overworked and about half have been overworked at some point in the past month. Couple that statistic with the ever increasing number of Americans who are out of work, and it becomes clear that more and more of us are unmistakably off-kilter and out of sorts.

Juggling all aspects of life has always been a balancing act, but author and speaker Dan Thurmon believes that an off balance life should not be fixed, but rather, embraced.

“Every day, we are inundated with messages about the importance of finding ‘balance’ in our lives,” said Thurmon, author of Off Balance On Purpose – Embrace Uncertainty and Create a Life You Love, from Greenleaf Book Group Press (www.offbalanceonpurpose.com). “How does this make us feel? Overwhelmed, out of touch, and unfulfilled. The problem isn’t us—it’s the message. Perfect balance is unachievable and undesirable. The perpetual quest for balance ends up limiting growth, progress, and the quality of life.”

Thurmon’s theory is that people need to free themselves from the “balance” dilemma and learn to thrive during uncertain times with a shift in attitude and actions: embrace reality, get aligned with your purpose, lean forward, and initiate positive changes. He offers the following tips to changing the attitude from anxiety to empowerment:

• Accept and take advantage of the contradictions in our daily lives
• Once you fully embrace uncertainty, you can learn to thrive in the midst of chaos and see opportunities that were previously invisible to you.
• You must let go to get a grip. The experience of “being overwhelmed” stems from an inability to let go of the things we cannot control.
• Integrate the five vital areas of life—work, relationships, health, spiritual growth, and personal interests—into a workable pattern, with strong, fluid connections between the areas
• Adopt a practical, concrete process for orchestrating changes and staying aligned with one’s purpose
• Life is not a hypothetical future; it is an undeniable present. Own your reality and engage life as it is happening right now!

With the economy in shambles, and people scrambling to make ends meet, Thurmon believes that the reality of off balance living is amplified, and that those who can implement these strategies will be rewarded.

“Economic uncertainty has caused millions of layoffs, and that number continues to climb,” he said. “Stock and housing markets remain uncertain. People realize that the systems that they believed to be ‘stable’ are, in fact, unreliable and overstretched. Many people find themselves unfulfilled, off balance, and lost for a plausible ‘next step.’ For those who are out of work, looking to reinvent their lives and find a new, more fulfilling and sustainable approach, learning how to live off balance could be just what the doctor ordered.”