Many of us yearn for balance in our lives. But perhaps that’s not the healthiest thing to strive for. This week, Janine and Shannon discuss letting go of the urge for balance and instead looking toward adding harmony in our lives.
Discussion topics include:
- The elusive nature of “balance”
- The pressure of feeling that everything has to be in balance
- How trying to maintain balance can be paralyzing
- Shifting to a goal of harmony, rather than balance
- The ebb and flow of harmony and melody
- The effect of little changes in maintaining harmony
- How a shift in language can make a difference on the unconscious level
- The vast difference in the feeling that the word balance evokes, compared with harmony
- Another possible goal: equanimity (which is easier to achieve when harmony is your guiding principle)
- How balance feels more effortful than harmony
- Allowing space for ebb and flow in a harmonious life
Link:
- Shannon’s blog post, The Problem with Balance
I like the concept– balance, I think of how many plates can you keep spinning? You might think polyphony/counterpoint, which is harmony created by multiple melody lines. Think Bach. (For something simpler, think of a round– Three Blind Mice?) But don’t ask me the details– I barely made it through remedial counterpoint in grad school.
Plate spinning is a great image, Marilyn! And great point about multiple melody lines creating harmony.