Balance – a seven letter word that is so hard to achieve. We all strive for it, yet why do we all seem to fall short of it each and every day? Real talk here for a minute. Often I think that people expect me to be perfectly balanced. I don’t have kids and I am not married. I can pretty much do whatever I want, whenever I want, right?

Social media these days portrays all of us to look super balanced and “perfect.”

Well let me tell you, I AM NOT BALANCED.. AT ALL!! This is really what I look like when I am out shooting these photos. Conductor of the hot mess express over here just double fisting some Starbucks Cold Brew.

Balance is something I need to work on Every. Single. Day. I have found some tips over the past couple months to really help me focus to be more productive and not beat myself up when reflecting on how my day has been.

CATEGORIZING Your “Stuff”

the non NEGOTIABLE stuff

There are certain things in life that are just non negotiable. These are things like your kids, your career, your food. These can also vary from person to person and will change during different seasons of life. Right now in my life the non negotiable things are my career as a nurse, personal time spent with Jesus in the morning and evening, meal planning and cooking to stay on track, and allotted time to work on my blog each week.

These things are set in my schedule. I have a planner and when I get my work schedule (as a nurse), I write in the shifts I work and then I schedule in when I am going to do my meal prep and grocery shopping. Some may think this is over the top. But heck, I did not lose 180 pounds by not planning out how I was going to get to my goal. The one thing I have had to work on is scheduling time to work on my blog (that you just so happen to be reading right now!) It has turned into a non negotiable! Things change over time.

important priorities

These are things that you “make time for.” Spending time with family and friends, a new home project, exercise, etc. To some people these could be their non negotiable things. The beauty of this is it is going to look different for everyone. My important priorities are exercising, spending time with family and friends, watching the Cleveland Indians (shocking, I know!) cleaning, laundry and reading. These are things that are important to me. They do not have to happen each and everyday but they are things that bring me joy and happiness. They are a priority in my life and they are of much value to me but I can not do them every single day. There are just not enough hours in the day but they need to be done in life to soothe my soul. Some of them NEED to be done but they are not vital to my existence. I will survive if I don’t get the laundry done today and I will also survive if I miss an Indians game or skip a couple workouts. A new thing I have been trying to do is actually scheduling time to RELAX. If you personally know me at all, you know I have a hard time relaxing but I am getting better at it.

the fun things

This includes all other things that can wait until later but you still enjoy. And again, this will differ for everyone. Some people could care less about watching the Indians and would rather get their nails done. For me, I would much rather watch baseball and could care less about a manicure. For me, this would include shopping (for makeup, clothes, etc.), listening to podcasts, going boating, going on a nice scenic hike (could also double as exercise)!

prioritizing your “stuff”

do one task at a time

I am the queen of TRYING to multitask. I am a woman, so of course I try and do this. I find that I am so much more productive if I focus on one thing at a time and complete the task at hand and then move on to the next task.  When I multitask, I find it actually slows me down in the long run. It can also lead to getting stressed out when going back and forth from task to task. Focus on the non negotiable task, complete it and then follow it up with an important priority.

Learn to say no

Ugh, this is not my strong area. Okay, I suck at saying no.

“Hey Maddie, can you do me a favor?”

“OF COURSE I CAN!!!”

That is the basis of how my conversations used to go. I am working on this and I think it is going to be a work in progress for a long time. I think I get this trait from my mom, because she is the most precious soul to ever walk the planet earth. When people tell me no, I am never offended. But why do I feel so bad telling others no? I honestly have no idea. And then when I tell others no, I always feel like I need to give them a long drawn out explanation as to why I am saying no. Anyways, just say no. Don’t stretch yourself thin. Over the past six months, I have learned the hard way- if you stretch yourself too thin and you try and be everything to everyone, it can really take a toll on your health.

focus on three

I have started doing this and it has changed the balance in my life. Instead of trying to do a little of EVERYTHING each day. I have started focusing on THREE things each day. Now once again, this is going to look different to each person. I am a nurse and on days when I work a 12 hour shift, I can not really focus on much more than that. For all you stay on home moms with four children, I know it is hard to focus on much more than keeping them alive on the daily (my best friend does it and I know how hard it is!)

But hear me out; instead of focusing on EVERYTHING just try and pick three things tomorrow. I like to pick ONE FROM EACH CATEGORY so I don’t feel deprived. Somedays when I am working a 12 hour shift, my three things may folding a load of laundry, whipping up a quick breakfast and heading to work. Working 12 hours is not easy. On my days off, I may work a few hours on blog content, go on an hour bike ride, and spend a couple hours meal planning and grocery shopping. But I only FOCUS ON THREE each day. The rest of my day I try and focus on relaxing and spending time doing things I enjoy. I also find I am so much more productive when I have some time each day to relax and unwind. I used to pack my days full from the time I woke up until the time my head hit the pillow to go to bed and it honestly stressed me out to no end.

Use a planner

Whether it is a physical paper planner or an app, scheduling things in advance can help you find balance in your life. It may sound silly but even setting a timer can help you stay on track during the day if time gets away from you easily. I am super old school and I am a huge fan of physical paper planners. I am always whiting out things because my schedule is ever changing and by the end of the year pages are falling out of my planner haha! But use whatever works best for you. Grab one on Amazon or the App Store has tons of them for free! Or run to Target and pick one up, who doesn’t need a great excuse to go to Target and get a Starbucks. I mean BALANCE, right??

cluster your activities

For people who are extremely busy and have no extra time to work with, you may find it helpful to cluster your activities together. Catch up with a friend while also going on a hike. “Kill two birds with one stone.” Not sure if that is the correct way to use that little phrase, but it works. Sometimes you have to do what you have to do when it comes to finding and achieving balance. You make time for things that are important and I know that when trying to find balance, clustering activities can be very helpful when you have a very busy couple weeks in your schedule. I have had a friend come over and helped me with my meal prep and caught up with her while I have cooked meals. It was fabulous! Now that is a true friend.

Balance is something we are all struggling to find and something we are all going to continue to try and conquer. Just know that you are doing a tremendous job and you are not alone if you feel like you are battling to find it. Try and focus on three things today and do not beat yourself up. You are killin’ it girlfriend!!

Thank you so much for reading and for being here! I love y’all so much!!!

Love and Hugs,

♥ Maddie