Sometimes You (I) Gotta Take It Down A Notch
After reading a good friend’s blog post about the need to persist and give your “all” in everything you do (which I agree with), I was reminded of the need for balance in life. With strengths, there are always opposing weaknesses, this is a fact of life. For people who are highly driven to succeed, like myself, there is always the danger of going to far, working too much, too hard, too long, and neglecting other aspects of our lives.
Personally, I think that one of the greatest challenges in life is to achieve balance. How do I balance time spent with my girlfriend, friends, family, and still have time to do my own thing and meditate, play sports or work on what I’m passionate about, while still going to work to pay the bills (ideally these last 2 items intersect). It’s certainly a challenge, and if I find myself drifting towards the “too much work not enough play/relationship/social time” end of the scale, I like to read this poem, it helps me “take it down a notch”. Enjoy.
SLOW DANCE
Have you ever watched kids
On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain
Slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down.
Don’t dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won’t last.
Do you run through each day
On the fly?
When you ask, “How are you?”
Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done
Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
Running through your head?
You’d better slow down
Don’t dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won’t last.
Ever told your child,
We’ll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste,
Not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch,
Let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time
To call and say “Hi”?
You’d better slow down.
Don’t dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won’t last.
When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift…. Thrown away.
Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over.
- David L. Weatherford
Good post Ryan. Thought I would contribute: What are you planning on “taking down a notch?” And how are you going to balance out everything in your life?
Thanks Talayna, and thanks for finally posting a comment I love it! I know you’ve been stalking my blog for a while
lol. Excellent questions, my work life in general I’m planning on taking down a notch. Personally, I think that 40 hours/week is far too much time to spend working on something, UNLESS I’m super passionate about it…and even then, I think 20-30 hours/week would suffice. The way I see it, the purposes of life are to love everyone and everything, to enjoy life, serve others and to grow. Nowhere in there is there anything about meeting goals or accomplishments or performing, as long as we are fulfilling these purposes daily then life’s good! 40 hours/week is a relative amount of time businesses/the government has decided is a good amount of time for us to work, it’s one of those societal standards that people simply accept because that’s how it’s been for a long time. So, for me, I’m trying to limit work time that I’m not passionate about but need to survive to as little as possible, so that I can spend more time working on what I’m passionate about (and converting that passion into money), as well as do all the other things I love in life that fulfill those other purposes (meditation, learning, friends, family, girlfriend, sports, travel etc).
As far as how to balance everything in my life, that’s a constant battle, and awareness is the key I think. I also believe that since it’s such a difficult concept we need to go easy on ourselves and never let ourselves get too down. Because balance is such a dynamic, ever-changing, subjective dance-like thing, it’s always changing, and in order to keep up with the change I think that we need to be at our best at all times (by meditating daily, eating well, exercising, reflecting daily, being present and aware and grateful etc.). It’s when we’re out of balance that life kicks our butt, I think, and tells us that we need to swing towards the other end of the scale in that arena of our life. I know this isn’t a very tangible answer, but balance isn’t really tangible I don’t think, it relies on taking the time to get to know ourselves very well and taking action to take care of ourselves. Specifically, right now I’m finding it difficult to balance my time to fulfill all my obligations (myself and my health and growth, work, girlfriend, friends, family) and to enjoy life and have fun
. Like I said, though, it’s a constant battle and I’m working on it by reflecting and doing my best to pay attention to life.
What are your thoughts? Do you need to take anything down a notch? How about balance?
Ryan,
I’ve gotta say. I love you man.. You are an intelligent soldier.. You’re right. I believe balance is the key. As a matter of fact, happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony. Like you said, With strengths, there are always opposing weaknesses, this is a fact of life. Strength is a positive thing in this contest while weakness is the opposing force. We should not let our weakness overpower our strength. We’ve gotta hold up brother.. The thing is, most people allow their weakness to overpower their intelligence. and that what “Pledge your allegiance to yourself” is all about. I’m trying to encourage people to “load their guns and shoot” I want people to get up and go… I want people to understand that they can do it.. Its not like they don’t know these things.. I am just trying to remind them. You feeling me bro?
You know me well man. You know how i roll. I’m a busy and hardworking individual, i remember last year, sometimes we didn’t even see each-other for days. I understand the need for balance. I take nights off to chill with you guys, watch pb, spend time with friends, family and all that. But i know that’s not enough. So i strive to attain maximum control when it comes to balancing things. This year has been hectic.. crazier than last year for sure.. I shall print off that poem and stick it to my desk as a reminder. Don’t stop writing buddy. You’re needed!
#Salute
Balance is key my friend. I know I am not as involved in your life as I was at one time. I’m not commenting in regards to Talayna’s comment, I think she’s much closer to you and can give more personal perspective.
But perhaps the shift you’re looking for is not to work less and increase the time spent with play/relationship/social time. Is it possible that you need a new job/money maker? Is it possible that you are looking at work as one side of the scale and it is balanced out by play/relationship/social time. Maybe you need to find a way to integrate play/social time into your work. For example, if you work 40-50 hours a week and you spend 30 hours of the time doing something you enjoy, are passionate about and meets a play or social time need, then you wouldn’t need to acquire that 30 hours elsewhere.
You can even integrate some of your passions into what you do at work. You could have daily mediation sessions in the workplace and invite co-workers to attend. Many employers would give you 30 minutes off to hold these sessions, especially if you integrated light stretching into the mix (reduction of injury) or do it after time because you’re passionate about it. Start a running/jogging/marathon training club at work. Have your employer or a group of employers fund it and train for a marathon. You would be able to share your knowledge of exercise, healthy eating and wellness with others.
Perhaps you need to find an employer that will allow you to integrate your passions into the workplace.
Love you bud. Keep on keeping on!
I really like what Scott said about integrating what you are passionate about into your everyday, and I know that is what you are currently working on (at least as of our last conversation… Three weeks ago?). Finding a rythem of life that you can dance to is a challenge, but once you find it, it is very rewarding! Slowing down is definately something I need to remind myself to do on a daily basis. It is easy to get caught up in the unimportant things and ignore the things that truly matter. For me, it is reminding myself that this is my last year of school for potentially forever, and that I need to relish every moment and friendship that I have right now, because they won’t be around forever. Awesome read, keep’er going!