The Myth of Balance
Life isn't about perfect balance - it's about intentional imbalance!
I often get asked to speak about 'work-life balance' - I love pulling apart the dangerous idea that we 'should' maintain perfect balance across all areas of our lives. Work, family, health, spirituality, creativity, relationships - all supposedly deserving equal attention at all times.
This impossible standard leaves us feeling like failures when it's impossible to achieve. We end up scattered, stretched and energetically depleted.
The truth is that a wonderful life isn't about balance - it's about rhythms, seasons, and deliberate imbalance. Different areas of your life will naturally require more energy at different times.
Here's how to embrace intentional imbalance:
Identify your current season. What genuinely needs more of your energy right now? A work project? A relationship? Your health? Give yourself permission to lean into this area without guilt.
Practice conscious neglect. Decide what can receive less attention during this season. Some areas of life can coast temporarily while you focus elsewhere. This isn't failure - it's strategy!
Create clear transitions between seasons. Set boundaries around how long a particular imbalance will last. "I'm focusing intensely on this project until March, then shifting my energy to family time."
Honour your energy non-negotiables. Even in your busiest seasons, identify the few essential practices that keep you functioning. Maybe it's sleep, movement, or connection time. Protect these fiercely.
Release the comparison trap. Other people's energy allocations won't work for you. Your unique life demands its own unique rhythm. What looks like "balance" to someone else might feel like chaos to you.
When you embrace intentional imbalance, you stop the energy drain of trying to be everywhere at once. You bring your full presence to what matters most right now, rather than giving partial attention to everything.
Think of your life as a symphony rather than a single, sustained note! Sometimes certain sections play louder while others rest. The beauty is in the dynamic shifts, not in every instrument playing at the same volume all the time.
You have permission to focus your energy where it's most needed right now. This isn't selfish or wrong - it's the most honest way to honour your finite energy and the people and projects that matter most to you.
What deserves your focused energy in this season of your life?
ENERGY CLUB UPDATES:
Low on energy? Check out yesterday's Energy Club podcast on how to get energy back fast, spot energy-drainers, and find easy boosts.