19 TAN UPDATE 12.09.2022 The balance is found within

—  Rachel Richter  —

Hi ! 👋

I am going to share something that shocked me when I first heard it years ago. It changed the way I think about the world and the way I engaged professionally and socially. Here it is...“If I know everything about your external world, I can only predict 10% of your long-term happiness. 90% of your long-term happiness is predicted not by the external world, but by the way your brain processes the world.” — Shawn AchorNow, hold that thought.Many people immediately rush to the idea of creating balance in “work” and in “life”. But in this quote you have just read, these things (the things we do in work and life) are external to us. And 90% of what really matters to our happiness is internal to us. So why are we talking about work-life balance? Why are so many seeking this external balance when that's 10% of the picture?We innately want balance because we know it will feel good. After all, we are creatures that thrive in homeostasis (🤓 i.e. maintaining internal stability while adjusting to changing external conditions).

So if we want balance, what kind of balance are we trying to achieve and why?I have opted out of seeking external balance.And I haven't given up on the idea of finding balance either — balance is important. I am simply driving balance from a different place now.This balance does not originate from somewhere predefined such as:

• Working a certain number of hours per week

• Getting up at specific time each day 

• Having your work calendar look a certain way

• Attending a x% of your workout classes

• Doing the “best” morning routine

• Carving out a specific percentage of time for social engagement

 Want to know what I do instead of seeking this balance externally in work and life? Here’s the kind of balance I practice because it feels good and yields a higher return on my investment of my time, energy, and resources.I create balance within myself based on my intentions and how I feel inside. The priorities people see externally in my work and my life are a result of my actions towards those deeply held intentions.It might look like work-life balance from the outside but it isn’t — it’s self-alignment.I cultivate alignment with myself to create the internal balance that supports my body and my positive experience in this life.✨ It’s not about work.🍃 It is not about life.🌀 It is about alignment. When we are not in balance it can show up as: 

• Missed individual targets or deadlines

• Suffering / non-optimal relationships

• Health issues

• Lack of energy, feeling sluggish

• Greater stress

• Creativity drying up

• Relying too heavily on one major aspect of yourself: your brain, your performance, only part of your body

The above are all signs that you have an opportunity to cultivate greater self-alignment to achieve next level results, personally & professionally — and greater balance in the process.So the real truth about work-life balance is that when we focus on it, we are focusing on 10% of the picture. It is far less relevant than the internal alignment within yourself, which is 90% of the picture. 

It’s not work.It’s not life.It’s you.You are the investment.Everything external follows from there.

You are what matters.Self-alignment is the higher-ROI balance you deserve. ✨

🧐 Found value from reading this? Who in your circle could benefit from having the opportunity to read this too?Be a catalyst for better connection — share this with intention. After all, this is exactly why I am sharing it with you, ! ✨May you have a wonderful weekend,Rachel