A Life In Balance

John F. Barnes referrers to the left and right brain as channel 5 and Channel 3. He says we should live a balanced life where the right and left brain work together equally and efficiently and often times when the left brain takes over we should change the channel from 5 to 3.

I have always thought of the channel 5 as noise. Or the snow you might see on a channel not broadcasting. You know what I’m talking about. It’s the chatter in your head when you’re trying to sit quietly, the grocery list of things you need to accomplish before 9am or the constant voices talking back in forth in your head. Sometimes you just want to say Shut up!!!!!

Easier said than done, isn’t it? So then just how do you get those voices to quiet down? How do you “change channels”?

My desire to live a balanced life is great, and know that the more balanced I feel, the more free I feel. But what does it mean to be balanced? To me, it means that you have a handle on the various elements in my life and I don’t feel that my heart or mind is being pulled too hard in any direction. More often than not, I feel calm, grounded, clear-headed, centered and motivated.

Tiny Buddha refers to the following for balance.
1) Internal (Mind, Heart, Health)
 ◦Mind: Challenging yourself intellectually vs. creating opportunities for your mind to rest
 ◦Heart: Giving love vs. receiving love
 ◦Health: Eating, drinking, exercising properly vs. resting and treating yourself to some extra yummies

2) External (Work, Social, Family, Fun)
 ◦Work: Pushing yourself to achieve goals vs. seeing the bigger picture and enjoying the ride
 ◦Social: Satisfying your social desires vs. taking time for yourself
 ◦Family: Fulfilling your familial responsibilities vs. creating healthy boundaries
 ◦Fun: Allocating time for things you enjoy doing vs. making sure you don’t overdo it

Both ends of each spectrum are actually quite positive; but if either side is taken to an extreme, something that is intended to be positive can end up being detrimental or unbalanced.

If you feel pulled too far in any one direction and uneasy about it, these steps may help you get your life aligned:

1. Acknowledge: Take some time to really look at your life, your state of mind, and how you’re feeling. Be honest with yourself and notice the areas of your life that you’re neglecting.

2. Examine: Notice, be aware if you’re leaning more toward an internal or external focus

3. Set Goals: Look at the outline to help you decide which ways you want to balance your life. Make a list.
4. Plan Tasks: Make a list of daily, weekly, and monthly tasks that you will need to do to achieve each of these goals.

5. Reflect: What is the most important thing you’ve accomplished? How did you stay focused toward this goal? How did you handle your fears, doubts, anxieties, worries, and negative self-talk? How does it feel to know that you accomplished the goal in spite of these parts of yourself?

6. Prepare: What is your inner “stuff” that will try to keep you from sticking to your plan? (i.e. fears, worries, doubts, negative self-talk etc.) Can you specify the things you will say to yourself to push you off track? (i.e. “just one more bite, I’ll start eating better tomorrow”) Make a list.

7. Empower: What do you need to remember in those times? What are things you can say to that self-sabotaging part of yourself? Be kind to yourself. Balance won’t feel good if you’re cruel to yourself in creating it!

8. Connect: Is there a person or a tactic you can use to keep yourself supported, motivated, and focused in those hard times? I highly recommend connecting and sharing your inner process with someone. Find someone who can help you challenge your inner demons, and celebrate your little accomplishments.

9. Plan: Just like accomplishing any goal in life, it takes time and effort to overcome your habitual patterns and create new ones. If you stay on track with this detailed and intentional process for three whole months, then there is a good chance you will create new habits to enjoy a more balanced life going forward!