It’s time for us to refocus, since all work and no play can make us very cranky! It can also leave us with a lot of regrets that maybe we should have prioritized a little differently throughout the years. Well unfortunately you can’t change the past, but we still have a lot of life ahead of us, and the future is still awaiting us. It’s time that we learn how to refocus to live a healthier life.
I remember when I was a young mother, I was watching one of the more popular daytime news shows and one of the woman anchors commented how women can have it all. They then proceeded to show one of her typical workdays, which consisted of her sneaking into her child’s room when it was pitch dark in the morning to give him a kiss when he was asleep, followed by all the various work activities she was doing throughout the day, and finally ending with her sneaking back into her child’s room to give them a kiss goodnight.
After watching that my initial thought was, is that what you call having it all? There was no balance there, in fact to me it seemed like it was very one-sided. Now I will be the first to say, that we all have to choose our priorities in life. What is important to me, may be of little concern to you, and that is ok. So, I am not here to try and convince you on what your priorities should be.
However, if you are someone who is struggling with work-life balance and is looking for ways to help you prioritize and refocus, then read on and I will share some tips.
Understand and prioritize those things that are important to you
The best way I’ve found to do this is to write everything down that you care about on a piece of paper, and then once completed, rank them on that same piece of paper. This way you can easily make changes. Once you’ve finished this exercise, rewrite them on a clean piece of paper in their priority order underlining your top three.
The reason this step is important is because although we may think we know what’s important to us, we often lose sight of it. This exercise helps us to focus on our priorities daily, which will hopefully have an impact on the day-to-day decisions we need to make. I keep this taped to my computer, so it’s always in sight. Also, remember our priorities change through the years, so you may need to update from time to time.
Refocus so you don’t have regrets
Everybody has different regrets in life, although some regrets are more life changing than others. But understanding where you will have the biggest regrets is critical in creating balance in your life.
Ask yourself, what will I regret more, not staying the extra hours needed to finish your work or not spending time with your family and friends. There will be many times when finishing a project may need to rank higher, but often times this becomes a regular pattern. If this is consistently occurring, then take a minute to refocus and make sure staying late is actually needed.
Normally we are making decisions on the fly, and not taking into consideration what our regrets would be until it is too late. But we’ve built up too many regrets through the years, so now it’s time to refocus and consider them first. All of the really great memories we have come from the experiences we share with friends and families, so it’s important to keep that aspect of our lives prioritized.
Balance includes your health too
I am sure that when you created your priority list, your health was at the very top-am I right? I would bet, probably not. For so many years we have cared for others and put ourselves last, that we now still feel guilty prioritizing ourselves.
In order to take care of others you need to prioritize your own health first. If you’re not healthy you won’t be able to help anybody else, so where is that getting you? Whether it’s daily, weekly, or monthly, you need to schedule things that make you feel healthy, loved, pampered, or whatever else you need to feel revitalized.
So, what makes you feel happy? Working out, bubble baths, sitting alone in your room and reading? Whatever it is, schedule it and don’t feel guilty. Lastly, don’t forget your doctors’ appointments! These are even more critical as we age.
Close down shop
Thanks to all of the wonderful technology that is available today, if we want, we can be on 24/7. I’m not only talking about work, but also other things such as TV and social media.
Pick a time that you will unplug every night and make it a routine. Depending on your circumstances you can even set a bedtime block on your phone so that your emails and texts are on sleep mode. The important part is to be consistent and get used to the idea that you don’t need that constant connection with your phone.
Which now leads us to…
Breathe, just breathe
I was never personally into meditation, but others who were always raved about the positive impact it had on them. Whether it’s meditation, yoga, praying, or just sitting quietly, scheduling time to relax is so soothing for your overall mental well-being.
Make sure that when you are sitting quietly, you concentrate on breathing and just letting your body fully relax. Let your mind shut completely down and slowly let your body relax from head to toe. Based on experience, the best time to practice this is right before bed because it helps your body shut down and transition into a good night sleep.
Appreciating nature can help you refocus
Have you ever been on a beach first thing in the morning before the crowd sets in? There is something soothing about the ocean and the sound of the waves. It may seem like there is not enough time in a day to refocus, but your body and mental state need it. Take time to enjoy nature and soak up the glorious beauty for everything it has to offer.
Whether it’s going for a walk in the woods, sitting by a lake, planting flowers, or feeling the grass with our hand or bare feet, nature stimulates our senses. It’s important that we don’t lose sight of all that life has to offer, and we should take time to see, smell, and touch the beauty that surrounds us. It really helps to put life into perspective when we do.
Find a new hobby or something that excites you
Having balance means there is work and there is play. More times than not we are investing way too much time on the work side and not enough on the play side.
It’s important that you build in hobbies and other activities that make you laugh, and you can look forward to. Whether it’s taking a cooking class, joining a book club, or scheduling regular outings with your friends, it’s important that you schedule those things that give you joy.
If it’s been some time since you’ve even thought about starting a new hobby, take a look at this article, which provides some great ideas.
By following these simple tips, it will help you to find ways to refocus and get more balance in your life. Don’t expect that things will change overnight but do expect that once you realize the importance of taking care of yourself everything will start to fall into place.
Do you have any tricks you can share? Please feel free to comment belo
Rocky and Rambo
These two frenchies for sure keep me balanced. Rocky (F) is our dog and Rambo (B) is my daughter's dog. They are such loveable creatures! Not only do they make me laugh, but they also keep me moving throughout the day!