Balanced Living. Creating Your Own Wheel of Fortune.

There are four basic dimensions to our lives: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. How do we choose to spend our time? Family, relationships, social, financial, career, civic, volunteer, relaxation, vacation? If we're concerned about our health and well-being, we'll want to find ways to keep our lives in balance. Our behavioral health depends on it!

Balanced vs. Extreme Living. Balanced living may not sound as exciting as living life in the extremes. Admittedly, those who risk it all to accomplish extreme activities may feel a rush that many of us will never feel. So, it's a personal choice that each of us must make. Daredevil extremes that require "going for broke" have been romanticized by Hollywood and novels, and extreme living often ends tragically. Yet, the bravest amongst us have accomplished incredible feats that have benefitted society in innumerable ways. By pushing the envelope on what's humanly possible, they've shown us what's achievable. But, without making a value judgment, my purpose is to discuss the benefits of balanced living.

Healing Soul Wounds. An unspeakable tragedy, and its aftermath, caused me to become a student of overcoming trauma, easing psychic pain, and reducing tragedy in our world. As I've candidly discussed in my soon-to-be-published book, The Gift: Tragedy To Triumph, tragedy can be a great teacher. In my opinion, the most miraculous gift, besides life itself, is the human capacity to survive tragedy and discover new ways to heal, grow, thrive, and, ultimately, triumph. As Socrates said, "The unexamined life is not worth living." Amongst the most powerful tools I've found for achieving self-transcendence through personal development are: self-love, forgiveness, gratitude, kindness, giving, and balanced living.

Creating a Balanced Life. No doubt, you're familiar with the proverb: All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Sadly, it may even make Jack a (prematurely) dead boy! Creating our own personal wheel of fortune requires that we determine how much effort we want to exert on mind, body, and spirit practices. Rather than living our lives on autopilot, we must decide how much money, time, and energy we want to spend on career-advancing activities vs. stress reduction activities; on self-focused vs. other-focused activities; and on making our world better.

Has balanced living somehow managed to elude you? Or, did you live a balanced life that has insidiously unraveled? If you're intrigued by the idea of living your life in balance and feel that you could benefit from guidance, encouragement, and accountability, a skilled life coach may assist you with practices that help to improve all aspects of your life. It's hard work and it takes time. But, YOU are well worth the effort. As you sow, so shall you reap.