Knowing Balance Through Imbalance

A happy, healthy life has everything to do with balance. We need balance in what we do, how we think, the words we say, the food we eat, and how we feel. I’ve recently come to realise that the only way we are able to be mindful of, and find this, is through our experience of imbalance.

No one relishes the hard times, but I’ve started to appreciate their importance in my personal development and my ability to find balance. I see the importance for the times that have thrown me off centre in order to make me aware of my desires for balance, and I know that my past challenges were necessary to get me to where I am today. I also know that today’s challenges will help lead me to tomorrow’s successes, as long as I see them as such. I believe we are here to learn and our experiences are our greatest teachers. There’s a quote I love that says “your greatest teacher is your last mistake.” Well, sometimes we need to get things wrong to know how to get them right. Likewise, sometimes we need to experience imbalance in order to know what balance feels like. It is from this place of awareness that we can then evolve.

Balance is key to everything. Running around all day in auto pilot makes it hard to be mindful of the choices we make, tipping the scales of balance either towards too much or not enough. Recognise (and come to appreciate) your imbalances so you can make the changes necessary in your life to find equilibrium. Take the time to slow down and check in with how you are doing. Notice how your body is doing, for often it will force us to slow down when we get sick. Assess the areas of your life that need work, that feel out of balance, so that you can decide how best to reorganise the other areas of your life in order to help support the needs of this/these area(s).

When you fight, can you learn to let go? When hurt, can you find forgiveness? Can you replace excuses with strength and accountability? In this fast paced world we live in, can you learn to slow down? Can you take charge and change what no longer serves you, and then focus your attention on the things that do?

Balance is an ongoing process, a way of living that requires regular attention and reminding. Make a concerted effort and decision to want to live a balanced life and remember that failure is a part of balance too. Live with awareness and be compassionate towards yourself when things don’t go according to plan. That imbalance may be nothing more than a gentle nudge to bring you back to your centre.

Balance is not something you find, it is something you create.