Live Simple To Create Balance In Your Life — By Jack Rugile, Simple Sapien

 

Balance is an essential component of happiness. When all aspects of your life are in harmony, it puts your mind, body, and spirit on an equal level. The definition of balance will be completely different from person to person. It is up to you to find the balance that is right for you. However, living simple will always help you create balance in your life.

Many of us have lives that are like a person attempting to walk a tight rope for the first time. We buckle. We wobble. We try to stay on by flailing our arms. But eventually, no matter how hard we try, we fall off the edge.

Some of us will give up. Some of us will get back on the tight rope and try again. Some of us will find a whole new way to balance. Those of us who find a new way to balance our like people riding bicycles. The balance is tricky at first, but once you get some speed and gain momentum, it is completely natural to stay in balance. Living a simple life is like riding that bicycle. It does not guarantee that we won’t ever fall off, but it greatly increases our chances of staying in balance.

Finding balance in your life can be a difficult thing. It most certainly will not happen overnight. There will be many hours of contemplation, reflection, imagination, frustration, and inspiration involved in the process. And even if you do find balance in your life, that balance may morph and change as your life changes. Things that are important to you now may mean nothing to you five years from now. Achieving balance in your life will be an ever changing experience.

Complications in your life make finding balance a much more difficult task. That is why I suggest living a simple life to help you create balance in your life. The less things you have to deal with in life, the better. Balancing five stones on top of each other is much easier than balancing thirty stones. The more we can focus on individual aspects of our lives, the better. When we spread ourselves too thin, our balance is bound to be thrown off.

Ways To Create Balance By Living Simple

 

·         Forget multi-tasking, single-task instead - By putting your full focus and energy on one specific task at a time, your best work is achieved. Put quality before quantity. Always strive for excellence in all that you do. Do few things, but do them well.

 

·         Spend more time with friends and family - Never forget your loved ones. They are the ones that will catch you when you are about to fall. They are the ones who will guide you when you are lost. They are the ones that will support you when you are feeling weak. Cherish them and provide the same support for them. Always let the people who are important in your life know how much they mean to you. It can never be said too much.

 

·         Eat healthy - In the words of Count Rugen from The Princess Bride: “If you haven’t got your health, then you haven’t got anything.” Implementing a simple, healthy diet into your life will not only make you feel better and more balanced, but it will also be cheaper. Eating fast food or prepackaged food not only costs more, but has less nutritional value. Don’t forget to enjoy and savor what you eat.

 

 

 

·         Exercise regularly - The quote above can be applied to this one as well. Exercise is needed to balance out the time that you are inactive. Combine this with a healthy diet and your body will be balanced physically.

 

·         Spend less than what you make - This simple principle is easy to understand, but can be difficult to live by. If you are in mounds of debt, that is obviously going to disrupt the balance in your life. By spending less than what you make, you can slowly get out of debt and stay out of debt.

·         Integrate your passions with your career - Having a job that you are passionate is so important in achieving balance. A good chunk of everyone’s life will be spent at work. If there is no meaning or passion behind your job, it will have a negative affect on you. Following your passion in your career might not yield you as much money, but it will bring you much more happiness and balance. The benefit of living a simple life is that you don’t need that much money to sustain yourself anyway, so money should not be a problem.

 

·         Rid yourself of material possessions - Having too much stuff can make you feel trapped or weighed down. Give away or sell the things that you never use anymore. When you go shopping, ask yourself: “Do I really need this?”

 

·         Write in a journal or blog - If you are anything like me, then you have ideas and thoughts swirling throughout your brain all day. I forget things and lose track of things so easily. Writing your thoughts and ideas down helps you remember them and make sense out of them. It helps you see the big picture in your life. It can provide insight as to what areas of your life need work and what areas are going smoothly.

 

·         Learn from others - Observe your friends and family. Which ones are successful, happy, and seem to live a quality life? What is differentiates their lives from yours? What habits do they have? Don’t be afraid to talk to them and ask them questions about how they live their life. Finding balance should never have to be a lonely task.

There are many other ways to bring balance to your life by living simple. What are some ways that living simple has increased balance in your life? What is your definition of balance?