Clay Nelson, Life Balance: Bask in Your Happy Place
http://www.noozhawk.com/noozhawk/article/063009_clay_nelson_life_balance/
With determination, a plan and maybe a little help, we can live life being content in who we are
When you spend any time out in nature — really out in nature — you see just how predictable nature is.
When landscape is deprived of what it needs to thrive — be it rain or sunlight — the landscape begins to wither; it can’t survive and the landscape begins to take on a different form. On the flipside, when a landscape has what it needs to flourish, it is a beautiful and pristine place, without blemish and in the state it is intended to be.
Just last week, I had the pleasure of being in such a place. As I rafted down the river and fished its banks, I realized that nature is a lot like people.
Like nature, people are predictable. When we are unhappy and uncentered, we get itchy-scratchy; we tend to do, say and be things that are out of character. When we don’t nourish our bodies, they change shape and we don’t have the energy we need to be who we are meant to be.
Yet, when we are tearing it up at the gym, nourishing our bodies, having fun and know who we are and where we are going, we become serenely centered in what we do, what we say and who we “be.” The best news of all is that unlike nature, we are not at the mercy of the heavens or mankind to nourish and care for us. We have a choice to be happy, to take care of ourselves, not to let other people under our skin and to be who we are meant to be.
How do we get rid of life’s weedy garden and get recentered in who we are?
First, you have to get clear about what not taking care of you is costing you.
Envision for a moment the seeds of your life (your efforts, your dreams, your relationships, who you are and what you do) playing out in a garden. The first garden is well tended, fertilized, weed free, hydrated and in beautiful, full bloom. The second garden is parched, overgrown with weeds, and the few seeds that landed there are struggling to become as intended.
If you are a gardener, which garden would you choose to plant your seeds in? The point is that the fundamental foundation of our lives is built out of the way we care for ourselves. If you want your life to be the best it can be, you will choose to take care of your soil first, and you will choose to take care of you so that the seeds you plant in your life (the things you choose to take on, the relationships you have, etc.) can fully bloom.
Second, you have to be committed to you.
Just like a garden, life requires maintenance. You can’t take great care one week preparing your garden’s soil and planting seeds, and then not hydrate and weed your garden the next. Having a great life requires vigilance. You’ve got to be consistent, not just when time allows. Otherwise, taking care of you will become one of those things you have every intention of getting to but never do.
Third, have a plan for taking care of you.
Create a written plan that says what you are going to do and when. Include only the things you love to do and plan when to do them.
For instance, do you love to fish? Pick up your calendar and schedule a day to go. Do you love date nights with your wife or family movie nights? Schedule the time to do it.
When you make the time to do what you love to do, you will find that you are more energetic and productive doing the things you must do (such as cleaning out the cat box or finishing a project for work).
Fourth, you have to ask for help and accountability.
Keeping our lives weed free isn’t always an easy task. If it were, we would all be bouncing off the walls happy. The best way to stay on track with regard to your commitment to you is to ask for help and accountability. Ask a trusted friend, a co-worker or even your children to hold you accountable for doing what your written plan says you’re going to do. Believe me, there are people in your life just waiting for you to ask for the help you need and to support you in having a happy and centered life.
Finally, teach others the value of taking care of themselves, too.
When we nurture nature, it gives back to us in the beauty it provides, the recreation we enjoy (such as catch-and-release fishing), the water that hydrates us and the food we eat. In nurturing ourselves, we need to give back to others, too. We need to teach those around us the value of taking care of themselves. We don’t do that by giving up a piece of ourselves or time with our families to teach. Instead, we teach by being an example of what “taking care of you” can do to brighten and energize life. Not only will you help those around you transform their lives, but it will allow you to constantly sharpen your own “taking care of you” edge.
You are the only person who has a say in how your life turns out. If you want to be energetic, passionate and happy, you’ve got to take you on. There isn’t another person, job, house, car or electronic gizmo that can make you happy. Only you can do that, but you have to choose to do so.
What do you choose?
— Santa Barbara resident Clay Nelson founded Clay Nelson Life Balance™ to provide businesses and individuals with what may be missing in their lives: purpose, personal and business planning, fun, effective delegation through team management, and accountability. Click here to download Clay’s complimentary e-book, The Balanced Life — How to Put Fun, Family and Financial Freedom into Your Business and Personal Life. Click here to subscribe to the free podcast of The Clay Nelson Life Balance™ Hour.
http://www.noozhawk.com/noozhawk/article/063009_clay_nelson_life_balance/