The constant pursuit of work-life balance is great, but it can also be daunting. Fortunately, there are new prospects that offer a more realistic and achievable way of living.
Jeff Karp, a professor of biomedical engineering at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, uses his scientific background to compare the back-and-forth movement of a pendulum to the ebb and flow of daily life.
In his book LIT, short for Life Ignition Tools, Karp encourages readers to use nature as a playbook for generating ideas and turning them into action. One of the tools he suggests is to follow a “pendulum lifestyle.”
“I hear from other people that trust in the process (and) balance is really important, we need more balance, that’s the ultimate goal,” Karp told CNBC Make It. Ta.
“It can end up being very frustrating and lead to anxiety, because we always feel like we’re out of balance. There’s a state we’re supposed to be in (and ) We will never be in that state.”
Karp realized in her own life that even when she was doing her best, it wasn’t sustainable to always have balance in her life.
“When I started looking at everything in my life – energy levels, motivation, hunger, sleep – I realized that I could step back and visualize it like everything was on a pendulum. I believed it. “It can be incredibly empowering,” he says. “Life has a natural rhythm, like a pendulum.”
Here are some practical ways you can use life’s ups and downs to your advantage.
5 ways you can live a pendulum lifestyle
When the pendulum swings in a direction you don’t like, whether it’s a change in your sleep quality or a shift in your energy levels that requires some effort, Karp says to be patient with yourself. suggests.
“Start shifting your focus from the expectation of achieving your goals and shift your focus to really simple single steps you can take to get things back on track,” he says.
When that happens, Karp recommends thinking of it as a fun challenge and trying some of the following steps.
Pay close attention to what’s happening: Pay close attention to how your habits throughout the day are impacting your situation. Then, make positive adjustments to better support yourself. Be aware of your natural energy patterns. Identify the times, days of the week, or seasons when your energy levels are highest and lowest. Adjust your schedule to account for increased productivity and downtime. Be curious: Be curious about difficult times and think about what you can learn from them. Be open to new experiences that have the potential to increase your resilience. Understand that once the pendulum swings in one direction, it needs to swing back. With all the downs, there’s a chance to turn the corner and go up. Remember that change is the only constant. Check yourself regularly. Think about what’s going on in your life on a larger scale that may be causing you to feel unbalanced. Decide what small steps to take to improve things over time.
Let’s say the problem is that you’re getting less quality sleep. Living a pendulum lifestyle may be similar to going to bed a little earlier or stretching for a few minutes before bed to relax your body, Karp says.
“Think about what’s working and what’s holding you back,” he recommends. “Then consider other possibilities, other ways of thinking: ‘What’s the first step?’
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