Why You Need Balance and How to Expand Your Success without Sabotaging Yourself
Often we live in the rut of achieving. Go, go, go. It takes somebody from aside to see how far we've gone and how much we've done. Can I be this person for you today?
I've done enough! You're doing very well! You did a great job! I am proud of you!
Can you take a deep breath today and feel content?
If not, I will ask you to give me call and let's talk about it. I can see some issues coming up for you and I can help you sort them out.
If, however, you find that there is a part of you, which wanted to hear that invitation and right now is jumping up like a little kid who had a permission to go out after doing a lot of homework, read on. I will give you a good reason to relax as much as you can. Not just relax but really to look back and acknowledge and celebrate your successes.
Reason number one: well, it's the obvious one, you need to revive, otherwise you won't have any energy left to continue.
Reason number two: by evaluating your success you can expand your over-all personal success rather than stretch in just one direction of your life.
What does it mean?
Let me draw you are picture, a picture of your achievements.
Some call it a Wheel of Life, others call it a Star Chart. Either way it shows what your current life look like and what is your capacity to achieve anything in your life is.
The exercise is simple:
Draw a circle and divide it into pizza slices. Each slice is an area of your life: relationships, love-life, career, social connections or friends, health, finances, personal growth, spiritual life. You can come up with your own categories.
Then rate yourself on the scale from 1 to 10 in each of those areas, and put those numbers on the chart. Then connect your numbers and look at your drawing.
Ideally you would have a perfect circle created by 9s or 10s. In reality you may see a starfish, or a boat, or a triangle. Some areas scored 10 and others could hardly reach 2 or 3.
Do not worry!
You did this assessment so you can now 'work' with it.
You can now start thinking of the ways to balance it out. Instead of achieving only in your career, for example, you can attend to your social life. Or if your health had been neglected while you scored 10 on your personal growth, this chart would indicate your new point of focus.
Ideally you need to be a balanced person. Rounded, literary, and figuratively speaking.
Why is it important to be balanced?
Because unfortunately, as human beings, living in this world, being programmed by our parents and society, we think we have limitations.
So, what has this to do with my chart or the balance I need, you may ask.
It has everything to do with it!
Next exercise I am inviting you to do, is to count the median number you scored on your chart. Just summon up all the numbers and divide them by 8 (or how many pizza slices you had). If you number is less than 9 or 10, means you have self-inflicted limitations to how much you can achieve.
How does it show up in the real world? Simple.
Let's say you work really hard on you career and scored an awesome 10 in that area. But you did it at expense of your health. Let's, exaggerate a little and say, you scored a pitiful 2 for your health and fitness. If you summon up those 2 numbers you'll come up with 12. Divide them by 2 (as we are only looking at two areas of your life now), you get a number 6. Right?
So this number 6 shows exactly how much success, you think, you can have.
So as soon as you get rewarded for your hard work, let's say you get a promotion or something, you'll start feeling incredibly uncomfortable. And, sadly, you may start sabotaging yourself to receive all the benefits, that potentially could bring your median number to 7 0r 8.
So, what is there to be done about it?
Well, you need to work in every direction of your life, slowly reaching a nice rounded shape. By slowly growing in every area of your life you are allowing yourself to expand out of your limits. You median number will be higher not at expense of your love life or your health, (because that really is a subtle way to sabotage your all together success), but you would follow a natural way of growing.
How does it sound?
Makes sense? Right.
Your assignment for today
after drawing your own chart or Wheel of Life, please, think of one action for each area of your life you can take to balance out your over-all personal success shape.
Can you do it?
If you find that something is preventing you from taking those actions, don't hesitate to set a Get Acquainted Call with me and we can talk about how I can help you to break through self sabotaging behavior. I want you to succeed and feel content. We can do it together.
Lira Kay an author, life coach and a founder of She's Got Passion and the School of Inspired Life a training center for purpose-driven professionals to find information and inspiration to stay on their mission to create a meaningful change in the world. Every Wednesday Lira answers one question she 's been asked by a member of her audience around the globe. If you have a question, please, go to CONTACT and send Lira your question. She will create a post to answer it or will send you a personal answer in the email. Know, that your question will help many others to find clarity and motivation. We are all connected and your input is important. Thank you.
