{"id":2665,"date":"2013-09-06T13:37:32","date_gmt":"2013-09-06T20:37:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.matthewliberty.com\/?p=2665"},"modified":"2013-09-06T13:37:32","modified_gmt":"2013-09-06T20:37:32","slug":"the-myth-of-balance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.threeadventure.com\/matthewliberty\/2013\/09\/06\/the-myth-of-balance\/","title":{"rendered":"The Myth of Balance"},"content":{"rendered":"

Balance is a myth, much like the American dream is nowadays. Sure you can balance on one foot possibly or if you\u2019re really good you can go to the Olympics and do the balance beam routine and win a medal\u2026but balance in the sense of having a work-life balance or a balance between any of the \u201cstuff\u201d we deal with on a daily basis is the myth I speak of.<\/p>\n

\"Practice<\/a>
The balance beam that most of us suck at (Photo credit: Wikipedia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I guess I should first confess that maybe there is an elite group of folks that can find balance but I will refer to them as the 1% just like the financial 1%. The rest of us are talking about balance and chasing it to the ends of the Earth with no possibility of attaining it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know about you but here\u2019s my life in a very brief nutshell: work at home dad, trying to build a business, married, social life, three blogs, own a home, and I do this and more while contending with depression and a lot of self doubt.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How in the hell do you balance that?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The quick answer is you can\u2019t. Here\u2019s what I have found, life is about subtraction not addition. If you have any hope at all in getting anywhere near balance, you must subtract. You need to become a minimalist\u2026you need to say no more often. You need to trim the fat and focus on the shit that\u2019s important to you.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You need to get rid of \u201cstuff\u201d. Get rid of debt, bills, cable, material possessions, and even the rugs and floor mats in your house (they make more work when it\u2019s time to vacuum, sweep, or mop\u2026so get rid of them).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Once you finish that you need to trim the mental fat. What\u2019s eating away at you? Do whatever you have to do to start getting rid of that or at least minimizing it. We have WAY too much \u201cstuff\u201d (mental, emotional, financial, and physical) that clouds our ability to enjoy life and be fulfilled. It\u2019s all that junk that sucks us in and consumes our time. I\u2019ve spent more of my past \u201cworrying\u201d about what is going on with family members or other relationships, money, work, and all the other daily grind crap that I have never been able to truly \u201cLIVE\u201d this life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How can you achieve (or even hope to) \u201cbalance\u201d if you aren\u2019t enjoying life?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You can\u2019t. All this \u201cstuff\u201d I have referred to is the big, fat ass monkey on your back that keeps you weighed down and distracted from life. Trust me I\u2019ve been on this long journey out of the dark forest of self doubt, hatred, and anger. It takes time and it takes more hard work than most are willing to put in.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I want balance even though I won\u2019t get it\u2026but I sure as hell can chase that myth. I can trim enough of the fat from my life to not feel all the heavy burdens and attempt to reconcile the madness.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The takeaway:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Get rid of any material stuff you don\u2019t need or use.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Get rid of debt as well as other bills you have that you don\u2019t really need (like cable, etc.)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

3)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Get rid of the negativity in your life\u2026even if it\u2019s your husband or wife.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

4)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Now focus on you and start saying no more often. Find out who you are and what makes you happy\u2026then do more of that.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Enhanced<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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