Balance--Vivika

“How to find balance.” There are countless articles in magazines, online, and in various other
sources with this same title or idea. From watching how-to videos to purchasing self help books, people all around us strive to find balance in their lives. What exactly are they searching for? 

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines balance as “equilibrium between contrasting, opposing, or interacting elements.” How can this apply to life? Do you have to have your life organized to be balanced? Contrary to popular opinion, being balanced does not necessarily mean having your whole life in order. To be balanced is to be stable, which is having the strength to stand. This does not mean that there aren't any problems or setbacks. In addition to this, being stable is different for each person. Some feel balanced while building and moving forward. Others only feel stability when standing still. Some are even balanced in regression. There is no specific state of life that characterizes balance. As the dictionary defines it, to be balanced means to manage ‘contrasting, opposing, or interacting elements.’ How does this specific part apply to real life? Balance is handling the various aspects of life in the way that each person feels right. For example, balance for one person may be spending 50% of their time at school, 30% of it at home, and 20% of it going out. If these are the order of their priorities, they have found balance. However, to the student who spends 20% of their time at school, 30% with friends, and 30%

with family, the original proportions would not be living a “balanced life.” Is time management all there is to having a balanced life or is there more? 

Being balanced also has much to do with mental state. Making time to do all the important activities is not all there is to it. Off the top of your head, can you name 3 things going well with yourself and your life? What about 3 things you need to or are working to change? In order to have a balanced view of ourselves and the world around us, it is extremely important to have equilibrium of mind. How can you do this? Do you need to have extremely high self esteem? Should it be low? The truth is that self esteem is only a part of having a balanced mindset. While you should strive to have confidence, but remain teachable, you should also feel the same about the world. While being realistic often times prevents disaster, taking a leap can sometimes open up new windows and paths. It is true that in our society ‘pessimism’ has an extremely negative tone and ‘optimism’ is seen as valuable. The truth, however, is that they both are extremes that can be dangerous. Once again, balance is different for each person. In this case, while mental equilibrium for some may be playing it relatively safe right in the middle, for others it might be rolling the dice with extreme optimism or taking very few chances on the opposite side of the spectrum. Here, however, the aspect of stability comes into play again. No matter which path is chosen, one has to know what comes and either choose to prepare or simply continue full speed ahead. 

What can you do to find balance in your own life? That is a question that nobody but you can answer. Write down what's important to you. Whatever comes to your mind initially is likely what really matters most. What is a better option for you? Playing it safe on an unwavering path

or risking it with the unknown? Take everything in your life and weigh it accordingly. Find your balance.