Expertise Article: Life Balance
Christina Parker, Director of Volunteers

Beware of Distractions Disguised as Opportunities
I heard this first from Patricia Fripp, one of the “icons” in our speaking industry. Organized chaos, as I call it, is a good thing. Straight and pure chaos is not. Frequently, I find myself chasing those distractions that are disguised as opportunities. Often the constant demands of my clients, employees, family and other daily distractions inhibit me from focusing on my growth. Between chasing distractions and my daily demands, my organized chaos quickly turns to straight and pure chaos. That chaos in my world sidetracks me every time I try to bring some order to my life and career.

     We control the directions of our energies. To develop new methods for achieving our goals, we must learn how to transform the power that chaos generates into a creative force. We can train our minds to become stronger during stressful times. To train your mind and maintain a productive organized chaos, here are a few tips.


     1. Take time to reenergize your mind. When life seemed crazy during my childhood, my grandma would always say, “You need a change of pace.” We would do something entirely different, with no particular purpose, freeing our minds from constraints. To gain new perspectives, schedule 10 minutes a day as a “minivacation” from tackling your action items. Listen to music, meditate or take a walk. Your body often gives out when it is exhausted; your mind acts in much the same manner. Give it some downtime from the daily commotion you encounter.

     2. Establish a pattern of game-changing behavior. Letting go of deep-rooted positions helps you gain perspective on possible new approaches. Schedule a specific time of day, maybe early morning or lunchtime, to think creatively. Begin the process by acknowledging how new developments may affect your business. Remove any doubtful thoughts from your mind, and figure out new ways to achieve your goals. Turn off all phones, and yes, even the bell on the computer that dings when you have a new email come in.  

     3. Remind yourself that you’re a risk-taker. It took courage to start your own business. And as your business grows, you will become more and more secure in your decision making. When new challenges occur, recapture your original energy by allowing yourself to feel uncomfortable. Reinvigorate your risk taking by investigating imaginative ways to move to your next level of success. Just acknowledging that there is a way out of any difficult situation increases your energy and lays the groundwork for new innovations. Often, as we get settled into our business, we lose some of that risk taking mentality. As a business owner, we must always keep a piece of that upfront and present.

     4. Identify your next step to success. Clarity and resolve are only thoughts until you act upon them. Your entrepreneurial spirit is your most valuable asset. Taking action rekindles your passion to conquer any new challenge. As you take action, your frequent successes will motivate you to push forward. Begin by clearly defining the challenge in writing. This visual image makes the situation manageable and, therefore, resolvable. While you may not have all the information to solve each problem immediately, stay open to new ideas and methods, and your resolution will surface.

Controlling the directions of our energies is part of the intimate dance of balancing work and personal life. That work-life balance is the ever elusive search for that middle ground where we will be pleasantly busy and challenged and yet able to enjoy life as it comes. It is a constant work in progress and I find that there is not just one way of achieving it. 

What three things can you do in order to achieve more balance for the next 30 days?



                        In addition to being a speaker, Christina is senior VP of 
      operations for Bruster’s Real Ice Cream. Her passion is teaching others how to build resiliency, so that, when adversities in life come, they will be prepared to survive. Christina has been featured in many media outlets and published in over 40 health and educational 
                           journals. Contact her at cparker@brusters.net.