Tips to tune up your balancing act

Bradenton Herald Newspaper
Joan Dickinson
April 29, 2008

Does life ever feel like a circus high wire act? One false step and the fall could be disastrous? We can balance our body/mind, but first we have to tune into the clues that something is wrong.

Assess your need for a tune-up with this simple ‘out of balance’ checklist. Make a mental mark next to each question you answer with a yes.

Do you…
· make sighing sounds when waking up in the morning or during the day?
· find no time to relax or exercise?
· get impatient when others are having fun?
· have difficulty seeing humor in situations?
· seem unable to concentrate on a current task or project?
· blame friends or business associates for small things going wrong?
· dislike what you see when you look in the mirror?
· feel indispensable at work or home?
· dislike or avoid the people you love?

If you answer yes to some of these questions, imagine yourself as a master of balance.

First, take a good look at the situation. Decide if this situation is indeed a high-risk situation that demands balance. If so, then what skills help us balance better, mentally and physically? Think back to the last circus performance you saw.

· Lighten up: Negative self-assessment terms, such as, “I can’t balance” or “I can’t do…” make us tense up our muscles and increase the possibility of falling off that high wire.
· Breathe: Shallow breathing decreases all performances.
· Ask for help: What do you need for success? If you need a silent environment, the proper high wire shoes, or other props or safety nets, have those in place before you begin.
· Visualize success: Close your eyes and visualize a successful process, step by step.
· Focus: If the end goal is not in sight or feels out of reach, fix your eyes straight ahead on a half way target. If we look back, down or sideways we might fall off that high wire. With present-moment focus, distractions will disappear and we can accomplish more in less time. Sometimes even saying the word, focus, will center us back on a task.

Second, if the situation really is not high wire dangerous (job, relationship or life threatening), smile. By changing our expectations of the situation, we will manage it better. Nonetheless, follow the same steps outlined above to success.

Third, review the checklist questions you answered yes to again. Ask yourself, what can I do, what do I need to have different in my life, to answer the questions with a sound NO? How can I balance my life better so I am not all work, or all play or all doing for others? Set one goal from one insight…and follow the same steps to success. Once accomplished, you can prioritize future goals.