Are you as healthy and energetic as you would like to be? Are you doing everything you can to minimize your stress and maximize your work-life balance?
Almost everybody answers those two questions with a definite NO.
Well I have some bad news for you. If you’ve got too much stress in your life, you probably created some of that … over the course of time. Dr. Paul Tournier says, “Most illnesses do not, as is generally thought, come like a bolt out of the blue. The ground is prepared for years through faulty diet, intemperance, overwork, and moral conflicts, slowly eroding the subject’s vitality.”
Or as one person said, “I finally got my head together. Now my body is falling apart.”
I’ve also got some good news for you. You can make a living AND have a life at the same time. In fact, you can make a very good living and have very good life. Work-life balance is not some dreamy concept that is out of reach. You can create a vibrant work-life balance.
Here are a few tips that will move you in that direction.
► 1. Identify your bad habits.
According to all the medical research, almost all of the major, life-threatening diseases can be traced to bad habits. Such as eating the wrong foods or not getting enough exercise.
So, take a cold hard look at your habits. What are you doing that endangers your health, builds your stress, or hurts your work-life balance? Identify each one of your unhealthy, stress-inducing, balance-killing habits.
When I did that it changed my life. Some 30 years ago I was severely disabled, with some doctors predicting my future would be a wheel chair. Rejecting their prognosis, I went on to do my own research and learned that my disability was coming from my unhealthy habits. When I identified those habits and eliminated those habits, I began enjoying incredible energy and health.
► 2. Make conscious choices.
Every day you make dozens of decisions that make you healthier or sicker … or more stressed out or less stressed out.
Unfortunately, you make most of those choices unconsciously. You may not stop to think whether the food you are putting in your mouth is adding to or subtracting from your health.
You need to get off autopilot and make conscious choices. Instead of automatically getting on the elevator, sometimes choose to walk up the stairs, knowing that will be better for your health and your stress.
Of course, some people think this conscious choosing will kill all the fun in life. It’s like the comedian Johnny Carson said, “I know a man who gave up smoking, drinking, sex, and rich food. He was healthy right up to the time he killed himself.”
Funny comment, but not true. Good conscious choices won’t kill all the fun in your life; they’ll actually add to your life.
One great conscious choice you can make right now is to join me on my next live webinar … 21 Secrets for Vibrant Work-Life Balance … from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time on May 15, 2019.
► 3. Say “no” more often.
In fact, you will never have vibrant work-life balance if you can’t say “no.”
So where should you start? Start by saying “no” to some things that fall outside your top priorities.
For example, no one can maintain more than a handful of priorities. If you have a job you care about, that’s a priority. If you have a family, that’s a priority. And perhaps your priorities include serving the Lord, staying in shape, or becoming financially independent.
Once you know your priorities it’s easier to say “no” when people try to pull you away from your priorities too much of the time. It’s easier to say “I’m not taking on any new commitments for the next six months.”
► 4. Visualize healthy balance.
Of course, that might sound a little crazy, or weird, or new-age coming from a practical, hands-on guy like me. But it works.
Take a few moments every once in a while, to picture yourself as healthy, energetic, positive and well balanced, whether or not you are. You might even repeat an affirmation to yourself, something like: “I am filled with energy, vitality, and health.” What you are doing is laying the groundwork for all of those results.
If you dwell on how badly you feel, you will make yourself sick, even if you’re not. And if you focus on how tired you are, you’ll get more tired.
When you think thoughts of health, you go a long way towards being healthier. When you think energy, you will have more energy.
Almost every day, at one of my programs, someone will ask me about my energy level. They wonder how I keep it up, day after day, year after year, despite my heavy travel schedule. The answer is simple. I don’t think about how tired I “should” feel or how much jet lag I “should” have. I never get jet lag. I just don’t think about it.
Are your thoughts leading you towards health and balance or towards stress and illness?
Two sisters went Christmas shopping together. One said, “Isn’t it fun? The crowds in the street, the throngs in the stores, and all the new things that are on display. I love to watch people as they shop.” The other sister remarked, “The crowds drive me crazy! You can hardly move there are so many people. Things are overpriced and all they’re selling is junk. I’m tired and my feet hurt.”
The next day, the first sister felt fine. The other one went back to bed with a headache. I wonder how much their thoughts contributed to their outcomes.
Final Thought: Are you working as hard on making a life as you are on making a living?