The Importance of Staying Balanced

Living a balanced lifestyle is very important in any part of life, but in college, it seems to be most important. College, for most, is in the early stages of adulthood. This is when we are figuring out who we want to be, where we want to go, and what we want to accomplish with our lives. Being stressed and overwhelmed can easily lead to having the wrong outlook on life and cause many mental and physical problems.

Balance is divided into two parts: internal and external. Our external balance includes things like work, social life, and family. Many of us have balance and success in one or two of these, but very few people have success in every area. Internal balance focuses on the heart and mind, like most internal things.

When I first started college, I enrolled in private trumpet lessons to help with my music degree. My professor said some things in the first few weeks that changed my outlook on life a little. He introduced me to the term “balance”. See, my internal balance was completely out of line. I was focusing on everything bad I did and not realizing what good things I had been accomplishing. He told me the key to life was as simple as balance and once I could see the progress I was making, it would become very clear that I was not completely failing. I am one of the many people who suffered from being imbalanced and I had no idea what to do about it.

If you are efficient in balancing on the outside, it is easy to forget what is important for internal balance and vice versa. One way to ensure both are in-check is to create a list of priorities. Focus on your heart, mind, and health to balance internally and focus on your work, social life, and family to get the external balance in check. For example, challenge your mind to take care of your mind, spend time with someone you love to nourish your heart, and eat healthy/exercise to treat your body like the temple it is. Pushing yourself in work, keeping in touch with friends, spending time with family, and doing things you love can fulfill the needs of your external balance.

More of one or the other could easily tip off the scale of our body and take a turn for the worst. If you ever feel like your scale is unbalanced follow a few of these steps to get closer to your goal.

• Set goals: Setting goals and planning for what you want to take care of will make it easier to see your priorities.
• Reflect: Focus on what you have already accomplished and what you are proud of or not so proud of doing for yourself.
• Connect: Connecting with someone you know will hold you to your goals and will listen to you when you need them is very important, it can be the make or break of the entire system.

One thing many people don’t do, including myself, is put themselves first. There is a time and a place to help others but when you’re not at that time or place, you should be focusing on yourself. Do things that make YOU happy and that make YOU feel like you own the world. One small tip of the scale can throw off our entire lives.

Balance should be a goal in everything you do. For me, being balanced makes me feel free and content. However, one thing specifically doesn’t always work for every person. Some people have trouble reflecting on what good things they have accomplished, and others find it very easy. People like me have trouble confiding in others. Personally, I feel nervous telling people all my problems, while some people have no problem confiding in their friends and family. The best way to go about this is by doing what makes you comfortable. While it is good to step out of your comfort zone, staying where you are happy can promote balance and lead to a good outlook on life.