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Phillip Brooks
5 years ago
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1 Life Balance

2 Want to know more? Contact Us. Call us at or us at Visit our website at All services are free and confidential.

3 Life Balance

4 Balance, I ve heard of it. -Les Kurtz

5 What is Life Balance? I am not in balance when I am out of balance.

6 What is Life Balance? Definition: Spending sufficient time on what is most important to you. It s a constant process. It requires some creativity. It requires balance checks. It requires early intervention to readjust.

7 Discussion Questions: How do you know when your life is balanced? (List 5 specific indicators.) What gets in your way of being balanced? How do you know when your life is out of balance? What are the early signals?

8 Recognizing Balance How would you know if your life was balanced?

9 Recognizing Balance I can sleep well at night. I can laugh instead of getting upset. I enjoy simple things. I count my blessings more easily. I have moments of peace I take time to listen.

10 My Balance Formula What do you need to be in balance?

11 Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some. -Robert Fulghum

12 My Self-Care Formula

13 My Self Care Formula

14 My Skills for Balance What are the barriers to a balanced life?

15 Obstacles to Balance Other s expectations and demands. My personal expectations. Not enough time. Guilt. Lack of skills. Lack of commitment. Other

16 Skills for Balance Make life balance important. Discover more time. Learn to say no based on your priorities. Be creative. Stay optimistic. Find quick balance activities.

17 Take Responsibility ACCOUNTABILITY LOOP SITUATION VICTIM LOOP

18 The Time Quadrant Important I Urgent II Not Urgent Not Important III IV Stephen Covey

19 The Time Quadrant Important Not Important Urgent I Crisis Pressing Problems Deadline-driven III Needless interruptions Unnecessary reports Unimportant meetings Not Urgent II Preparation Prevention Planning Relationship building Re-creation Values clarification IV Trivia, busywork Irrelevant phone calls Time-wasters Escape activities Excessive TV, Internet Stephen Covey

20 Saying No Refer to your priorities. When you say yes to one thing you are saying no to something else. You can take some time before you answer. Say no to the request without rejecting the requester. You don t have to give an explanation. You can make a counter offer.

21 When your daily activities are in concert with your highest priorities, you have a credible claim to inner peace.

22 Dealing with Guilt Guilt comes from beliefs that we have developed over our lives. These beliefs are not always rational, accurate or useful. Examples are I can do it all ; I can t ask for help others are too busy. I must do all or nothing. We need to examine the beliefs and work on developing healthier ones. Examples: My needs are as important as others. I can ask for help. I can say no. Good enough is good enough.

23 Be Creative! Listen to books while driving, exercising. Spend time with your children while doing household chores Exercise while watching your favorite tv show Pick a location on your drive to/from work where you start/stop thinking about work. Other??

24 Learned Optimism Martin Seligman Permanence Pervasiveness Personalization

25 What are your beliefs about Life Balance? I will never have life balance Everything in my life is out of control Everyone else is in control of my life. I just don t deserve life balance. Today I didn t do so well, but I can do better tomorrow Look at what did go right today I deserve to have life balance If I m happy, I can be a better person for others

26 Quick Balance Activities Stretch/shift your body/perspective Healthy snack drink regularly Humorous calendar or a good joke A short walk outside Play a favorite song Read a favorite quote

27 Self Care Inspiration Oh, I ve had my moments, and if I had to do it over again, I d have more of them. In fact, I d try to have nothing else. Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day. Nadine Stair, age 85 Louisville, Kentucky

28 Balancing Life I have been through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened. -Mark Twain US humorist, novelist, short story author, & wit ( )

29 Check Your Life Balance Signals How do you know when you are out of balance?

30 Out of Balance Signals Feeling like you can t meet the demands in any area of your life? Overworked yet unfulfilled? Fantasizing about an escape plan? Frustrated with other s lack of support? Lacking energy? Low morale?

31 Out of Balance Signals Regularly waking up tired in the morning and struggling to get to work. Feeling as if you are working harder but accomplishing less. Becoming frustrated easily. Losing compassion for friends and family. Routinely feeling bored or disgusted. Experiencing illness, aches and pains.

32 The Responsibility of Balance Only you are responsible for your happiness. Balance does not happen by accident, although the pleasure of balance can surprise us. Gaining balance requires commitment, insight and experimentation. Our formula for balance changes through our lives. Be alert!

33 Life Style Change Form Lifestyle Change Experiment I am not going to take work home with me. I am going to walk 20 minutes on my lunch hour. I m going to attend a class on retirement. Start Date End Date Result 8/20 9/4 I felt guilty for the first few days, and then felt relief. Comments I am going to continue this behavior. 9/4 9/17 Got too sweaty. Try again when it s cooler. 9/17 9/17 Learned a lot. Attend another class in October.

34 Achieving Balance My private measure of success is daily. If this were to be the last day of my life would I be content with it? To live in a harmonious balance of commitments and pleasure is what I strive for. - Jane Rule

Session 20: Balance Your Thoughts

Session 20: Balance Your Thoughts Changing your old lifestyle habits is hard. However, you have already learned that it is possible. In addition, many of you comment on all the positive things that have