How To Find Balance In Your Life

Eat your greens. Remember your P’s and Q’s. Wash your hands before every meal. Work out at least 20 minutes a day. Open the door for a stranger. Spend time with your family. Drink less. Don’t do drugs. Believe in yourself. Believe in others. Smile more. Frown less. Mow the lawn. Rake the leaves. Compliment a stranger. Ask her to marry you. Re-consider your divorce. Get more sleep. Drink more water. Do Yoga. Say hi to your neighbor. Think of someone you admire. Write to that person. Wash your car. Make your bed. Watch less T.V. Read more. Comment more. Take a nap. Listen to good music. Pay for good music. Go to a concert. Volunteer. Eat organic. Eat out less. Cook for friends. Call home. Set sail. Swim in the ocean. Go for a run.

To have balance in life is not difficult, it takes discipline and an understanding of your priorities. What is the absolute most important thing you must do everyday? Eat.  Brush your teeth. Drink water. Dress yourself … those are fundamental. On top of the necessities of life it is important to maintain balance.

How can you do this with such a busy life?

1. Make a list

Create a list with three columns:

• Must do: The important things in your day above the fundamentals, like work out, spend more time with family, go to work, slay dragons.
• Can do: After completing your must-do list, create a list of the things you know you can do today. Take public transit to work, call home, email an old friend.
• Would be nice to do: Once your can-do list is complete, now create a list of all the things that would be nice to do like mow your neighbors lawn, wash your girlfriends car, mail a valentines day card.

2. Prioritize each list

Now that your columns are in place, rate each item in order of importance by giving it a % grade. Assign a time of day and day of week to complete this task. Remember balance is key, so make sure you are not assigning any value higher than 20% to any task. And think of the priority as a percent also the time in which it could take you to complete the task. Example: Take son out for ice cream 5% priority, which takes about 5% of your day. Time is an important factor in this equation.

We have created a sample sheet for your reference. Click Here for the Google Doc (Simply click “File” and “Make a Copy” to create your own)

3. Add tasks to calendar

Now add each task to your calendar. This make take awhile, but it is well worth it. Once you are done, you will have an organized and assigned list of tasks for the week with reminders to boot.

4. Share the list

If you are willing to do so, share this list with a friend, your wife, or a neighbor. The more people who know about your commitment to balance, the more you will feel obligated to complete them. Over time these seemingly mundane or ‘low priority’ tasks will become a natural part of your daily routine.

In life it is very difficult to achieve anticipated levels of success on no more than three things. That’s right, three things. If you are planning to scale your business, get in shape, and be an active member of your dragon slaying community, than other things will end up on the wayside, including (potentially) your love life, your grooming or even your knitting (who knows).  As you work on your list of tasks for a balanced life, keep the three things top of mind, but out of the equation. The purpose of this list is to inject more balance into your life so that other important things are not neglected.

Again, click here for your own Life Balance Spreadsheet. (click File and “Make a Copy”)