Balancing Act
During the spring break of my junior year in high school, my parents and I embarked on a college tour across the southeast and Texas, touring multiple schools along the way. It was during this trip that we learned that everything truly is bigger than Texas (special thanks to the Ranch Hand Cafe in Cleveland, TX) and where I fell love with Baylor University. During this excursion, I also learned that there was one school I toured that left me with no desire of applying there.
Over the course of said tour, I found myself getting the impression that this school wasn't the best fit for me. Between the overview and the beginning and the tour itself, something just felt off. That said, I really did want to like the school and give it a chance. After all, the tour was still in progress. At the end of the tour, the tour guide explained why they chose the school. When going on college tours, I was interested to hear why the tour guide picked the school. Usually, this answer would be that the tour guide felt at home/fell in love with the campus when they toured, that they loved the people/community, or something else speaking to why they loved where they attended. In this instance, here was the tour guide's deciding factor: balance. They felt that the school they chose presented them with the best overall balance. For me though, that answer seemed odd, a little out there, and was what I remembered most about the tour. When it came to choosing a school, balance wasn't something that ever really came to mind for me.
Recently, my Mom came to Houston for the week. It was great to spend time with her and catch up. One night, when we were talking about priorities in the midst of life's busyness, we found ourselves joking that our tour guide 7 years ago may have been on to something when they talked about balance. Although balance seems like an odd, defining reason to choose one college over the rest, it's definitely an important term and something to keep in mind with the post-college life.
When talking about balance, one of the first things that comes to mind for me is...cereal commercials. Growing up, I can remember watching countless cereal commercials touting how some sugar-ridden cereal (be it Frosted Flakes, Cocoa Puffs Reese's Puffs, etc.) was a part of a "balanced breakfast". It's hard to imagine how some of these cereals could actually be a part of a balanced breakfast -- unless the rest of it consisted of kale, broccoli, tofu, and eggplant. There's something about finding a balance that's worth pursuing -- especially if it's served with a bowl of Cocoa Puffs.
Kidding aside, I think the biggest reason why balance has become such an elusive word for me is because of what life looks like with balance -- and without balance. It could be that balance is something that we take for granted and don't realize how critical it is until we don't have it. When we don't have that balance in our lives, the dreaded term "burnout" can come into play. This comes from stretching ourselves too thin and not giving ourselves enough time to rest, relax, and recharge. Eventually, we reach a tipping point where it becomes too much -- and the effects of it are devastating. I've seen posts these days listing signs of burnout - feeling tired all of the time, detachment, insomnia, and forgetfulness, to name a few. None of those are features that anyone would want to consistently endure - it's just not a sustainable way to live. It's also an imbalanced way of living.
In college, people would joke that it's is a triangle between academics, sleep, and social life -- but you only get to choose two of the three. With the post-college life, the phrase "work-life balance" gets thrown around a lot. The thing is, the "life" portion consists of a lot of different buckets, so to speak. Those buckets include: personal life, spiritual life, family life, resting, and so on. Even when one takes out one's professional life, these can still be hard to manage and find the proper balance with. But why is that? Why is it so hard to balance our personal lives?
For me, I have this bad habit of being a people pleaser and not wanting to let others down. Naturally, this can lead to me over committing at times and denying myself of rest or a break when I need one the most. Taking a break or resting can feel like a sign of weakness or a concession that I can't do as much as I'd like to do (or commit to). It's also made me question at times if it's bad that there are times I'd rather spend a Friday night playing Scrabble by myself or spending a Sunday afternoon watching the end of a Packers game or NASCAR race as opposed to going out with friends to a fun event. Part of that may be an introverted struggle, but that's another story.
Finding a balance can also be hard when life happens. You know, unexpected events and circumstances or close family and friends going through a tough time. For me, when these arise, it can give me a hard time because they throw me off my routine and I sometimes struggle with how to respond and handle what's unfolding. Life can already be hectic and crazy as is, managing unexpected events in the midst of it only make a finding a balance that much more difficult.
Over the past few years (and especially over the past few months), one thing about finding a balance that I've learned is prioritizing. That means setting boundaries on what's most important in our lives and how we spend our time. If we don't prioritize rest or taking care of ourselves, it will catch up to us. It's not inherently bad to stay in play Scrabble or watch sports, provided that I don't do it every single time or let it negatively impact other areas of my life, like going to work, going to church, or not getting enough sleep. I've also learned that there's always going to be another event to attend. Now, this isn't to say never go to any event because there will inevitably another one.Conversely, it's to say that no one makes it to every single event and that it's best not to beat yourself up it you can't make it for one reason or another.
In short, life truly is a balancing act. There's no perfect plan or way to balance all that goes on in life. What we can do though is prioritize and set boundaries for ourselves. When it comes to balancing, I've still got a lot to learn - but I know that will come with time. Eating Cheerios for breakfast certainly helps. After all, they're a part of a well-balanced breakfast.
Over the course of said tour, I found myself getting the impression that this school wasn't the best fit for me. Between the overview and the beginning and the tour itself, something just felt off. That said, I really did want to like the school and give it a chance. After all, the tour was still in progress. At the end of the tour, the tour guide explained why they chose the school. When going on college tours, I was interested to hear why the tour guide picked the school. Usually, this answer would be that the tour guide felt at home/fell in love with the campus when they toured, that they loved the people/community, or something else speaking to why they loved where they attended. In this instance, here was the tour guide's deciding factor: balance. They felt that the school they chose presented them with the best overall balance. For me though, that answer seemed odd, a little out there, and was what I remembered most about the tour. When it came to choosing a school, balance wasn't something that ever really came to mind for me.
Recently, my Mom came to Houston for the week. It was great to spend time with her and catch up. One night, when we were talking about priorities in the midst of life's busyness, we found ourselves joking that our tour guide 7 years ago may have been on to something when they talked about balance. Although balance seems like an odd, defining reason to choose one college over the rest, it's definitely an important term and something to keep in mind with the post-college life.
When talking about balance, one of the first things that comes to mind for me is...cereal commercials. Growing up, I can remember watching countless cereal commercials touting how some sugar-ridden cereal (be it Frosted Flakes, Cocoa Puffs Reese's Puffs, etc.) was a part of a "balanced breakfast". It's hard to imagine how some of these cereals could actually be a part of a balanced breakfast -- unless the rest of it consisted of kale, broccoli, tofu, and eggplant. There's something about finding a balance that's worth pursuing -- especially if it's served with a bowl of Cocoa Puffs.
Kidding aside, I think the biggest reason why balance has become such an elusive word for me is because of what life looks like with balance -- and without balance. It could be that balance is something that we take for granted and don't realize how critical it is until we don't have it. When we don't have that balance in our lives, the dreaded term "burnout" can come into play. This comes from stretching ourselves too thin and not giving ourselves enough time to rest, relax, and recharge. Eventually, we reach a tipping point where it becomes too much -- and the effects of it are devastating. I've seen posts these days listing signs of burnout - feeling tired all of the time, detachment, insomnia, and forgetfulness, to name a few. None of those are features that anyone would want to consistently endure - it's just not a sustainable way to live. It's also an imbalanced way of living.
In college, people would joke that it's is a triangle between academics, sleep, and social life -- but you only get to choose two of the three. With the post-college life, the phrase "work-life balance" gets thrown around a lot. The thing is, the "life" portion consists of a lot of different buckets, so to speak. Those buckets include: personal life, spiritual life, family life, resting, and so on. Even when one takes out one's professional life, these can still be hard to manage and find the proper balance with. But why is that? Why is it so hard to balance our personal lives?
For me, I have this bad habit of being a people pleaser and not wanting to let others down. Naturally, this can lead to me over committing at times and denying myself of rest or a break when I need one the most. Taking a break or resting can feel like a sign of weakness or a concession that I can't do as much as I'd like to do (or commit to). It's also made me question at times if it's bad that there are times I'd rather spend a Friday night playing Scrabble by myself or spending a Sunday afternoon watching the end of a Packers game or NASCAR race as opposed to going out with friends to a fun event. Part of that may be an introverted struggle, but that's another story.
Finding a balance can also be hard when life happens. You know, unexpected events and circumstances or close family and friends going through a tough time. For me, when these arise, it can give me a hard time because they throw me off my routine and I sometimes struggle with how to respond and handle what's unfolding. Life can already be hectic and crazy as is, managing unexpected events in the midst of it only make a finding a balance that much more difficult.
Over the past few years (and especially over the past few months), one thing about finding a balance that I've learned is prioritizing. That means setting boundaries on what's most important in our lives and how we spend our time. If we don't prioritize rest or taking care of ourselves, it will catch up to us. It's not inherently bad to stay in play Scrabble or watch sports, provided that I don't do it every single time or let it negatively impact other areas of my life, like going to work, going to church, or not getting enough sleep. I've also learned that there's always going to be another event to attend. Now, this isn't to say never go to any event because there will inevitably another one.Conversely, it's to say that no one makes it to every single event and that it's best not to beat yourself up it you can't make it for one reason or another.
In short, life truly is a balancing act. There's no perfect plan or way to balance all that goes on in life. What we can do though is prioritize and set boundaries for ourselves. When it comes to balancing, I've still got a lot to learn - but I know that will come with time. Eating Cheerios for breakfast certainly helps. After all, they're a part of a well-balanced breakfast.
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