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So many people strive for the perfect balance in their life, but will they every find it? We've talked about finding balance in many of our episodes in the past but in this one, we're discussing why it's really difficult to achieve and why you should accept the fact that life will not be perfectly balanced all the time. The Truth About Work-Life Balance If you're struggling to find the perfect work-life balance, you're not alone. Many workers find it hard to balance their jobs with their social and family life. It leaves them feeling overworked, stressed out, and frustrated. Sometimes work-life balance gets so bad that you need to consider taking another job. In order areas, it all depends on how well you can prioritize and manage your time. If you are taking on way too many responsibilities, saying yes to everything (especially things we truly don't want to do), and putting a ton of pressure on yourself, it's no wonder why you feel like you can't balance. When you say yes often and prioritize everything, then nothing actually becomes important. Instead, make deliberate choices about what you want in life and how you want to spend your time. Does It Ever End? Whether you're a fan of 'balance' or not, you have to realize that your ideal vision of the perfect balance may not ever be realistic. Therefore, you may never get to your end goal if you simply seek more balance. First, you have to ask yourself what balance means to you and what you can actually control. For example, you can't control emergencies that throw you off schedule or a random phone call from a family member who you haven't talked to in a while. You can't schedule out or anticipate everything. There are going to be some days when things are just all over the place and you'll need to embrace the chaos and move on. In many ways, the idea of achieving the perfect balance can be very flawed. Balance is often not the end goal and it can't be because while it can be influenced, it can't be controlled 100%. When people say that want more balance, they are usually craving a specific end result which is in fact not balance at all. Your end goal may be to spend more time with your family, stop working at a certain time each day, enjoy your hobbies more, and just protect your overall quality of life. These are the things you should focus on instead of trying to equally distribute your time and energy to all the various different aspects of your life. Rethinking Balance We challenge you to rethink balance. It's usually not what you truly want in the end. While you may achieve a more balanced schedule and obtain more time to enjoy your life outside of work, the "balance" you achieve will go out the window as soon as a disruption pops up and throws your day off. Achieving the perfect balance long-term is nearly impossible. Plus, a balanced life may not even make you happy or fulfilled in the end. What you really want is more time to focus on what's important to you. It's not guaranteed that achieving balance will actually protect what is most important to you or give you the end result you want. Instead of working so hard to achieve balance - which is something that looks different to everyone - create the life you want that revolves around your values and interests. For more tips and advice on balance and how to find a new perspective on the popular concept, be sure to check out our episode. In this episode we discuss: 1:45 - Let's talk balance! 13:00 - Have you considered NOT balancing? 22:15 - Finding a new perspective on balance Related Links to Check Out: Why Being Busy Shouldn't Be a Badge of Honor How to Stop Being a Perfectionist This episode was brought to you in part by Audible.com. You can listen to any audio book for FREE with a 30 day trial using our link!