Living > Work-Life Balance
What if we focused on living, instead of balancing work with life?
Hello,
"Set your boundaries to achieve work-life balance."
This advice is all too common. The approach behind it is about dividing our waking hours neatly between our work and our life... and further between our personal, family, and social life.
But what if this division is the very source of our dissatisfaction?
Since our lives are in constant motion, a fixed state of balance is an unrealistic expectation. The search for this balance makes us:
- Compartmentalize: Treating work and life as separate parts leads to fragmentation.
- Constantly strive: Balance suggests constant adjustment, potentially creating stress and anxiety.
- Neglect the present: Focusing on future balance prevents us from fully engaging with our present experience.
- Feel adversarial: Seeking balance creates a sense of opposition between work and life, turning them into competing entities.
What if, instead of chasing this elusive balance, we explored a unified way of living? This unified way means living with:
- Intentionality: Acting with awareness in all aspects of our lives.
- Integration: Blending life's facets into a cohesive whole.
- Mindful engagement: Being present and attentive.
When we prioritize unified living, we get to:
- Find meaning: Our professional and personal work both become an expression of our values.
- Become resilient: We learn to adapt more easily to change.
- Enjoy living: We learn to appreciate all aspects of life including our work.
Experiencing this wholeness of life leads to deeper satisfaction that does not depend on isolating work from life.
What would blending your life into a unified whole mean for you?
In fullness,
/rajesh