Balance is about feeling good about yourself and being in control of all aspects of your life. It’s no easy task to create balance though, and probably takes a lot of work. I tend to follow the Zig Ziglar teachings on life balance, so I’ll share a bit on these 7 areas to help create balance.

1. Mental
What we accept as our beliefs, are what become our realities. So, it’s reasonable that we should be careful about what we allow to enter our minds. Be careful about the media we listen to, read, etc. Don’t readily accept other people’s feelings or belief systems as our own. Pay close attention to the mental tapes we play in our minds…how we feel about ourselves, others, our environment, etc. Protecting our mental state will allow us to be calm, make good decisions, etc.

2. Spiritual
It’s important to remember to stay grounded, rooted in my faith or spirituality, both when things are good, and when they’re bad. Don’t expect to be perfect, as practice is how we become better at things. Trust in the power that guides you. Some of the ways to practice include reading daily devotions, or spiritual works, prayer, meditation, and writing our thoughts on paper. Remember, that we can start our day over spiritually anytime we want!

3. Physical
Some people have a history of going overboard with healthy physical habits, like exercise and diet. Others don’t do what’s necessary to be healthy. It takes discipline to eat healthy & exercise, but just know that some is always better than none. Daily practice of physical health makes for a much happier life.

4. Family
Someone once said, put other humans and your spiritual power ahead of yourself and you’ll have a happy family life. Since we spend much of our time with our families, it’s important to take care of them. It doesn’t even necessarily take a lot of time or effort. Active listening, understanding & patience go a long way.

5. Financial
Just because billboards say that a better car, or a bigger house makes us happy, does not make it true. People experience varying levels of financial success and hardship. Both can make us stronger. What’s important is to learn lessons from our financial experiences and try not to repeat bad behavior. Remember that it’s harder to pay off debt than it is to earn the money needed.

6. Personal
With all the stress & busy times of life, having personal hobbies is important. Taking the time to enjoy the things we like makes for a much happier existence. Remember though, that this is a piece about balance, so too much or too little takes away from other aspects of our lives.

7. Career
For some, a job is good enough, while for others, a career is what’s needed. It’s not how prestigious your title, or how much money you earn that’s important, but how happy the job or career makes you. Being the best we can be is what’s empowering!