AN IDEAS INTO ACTION GUIDEBOOK
Finding Your Balance
IDEAS INTO ACTION GUIDEBOOKS
Aimed at managers and executives who are concerned with their own and others’ development, each guidebook in this series gives specific advice on how to complete a developmental task or solve a leadership problem.
| LEAD CONTRIBUTORS | Joan Gurvis |
| Gordon Patterson | |
| CONTRIBUTOR | Patricia J. Ohlott |
| GUIDEBOOK ADVISORY GROUP | Victoria A. Guthrie |
| Cynthia D. McCauley | |
| Ellen Van Velsor | |
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLICATIONS | Martin Wilcox |
| EDITOR | Peter Scisco |
| ASSOCIATE EDITOR | Karen Mayworth |
| DESIGN AND LAYOUT | Joanne Ferguson |
| CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS | Laura J. Gibson |
| Chris Wilson, 29 & Company |
Copyright © 2004 Center for Creative Leadership.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.
CCL No. 427
ISBN-10: 1-882197-87-9
ISBN-13: 978-1-882197-87-3
CENTER FOR CREATIVE LEADERSHIP
AN IDEAS INTO ACTION GUIDEBOOK
Finding Your Balance
Joan Gurvis and Gordon Patterson
THE IDEAS INTO ACTION GUIDEBOOK SERIES
This series of guidebooks draws on the practical knowledge that the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®) has generated in the course of more than thirty years of research and educational activity conducted in partnership with hundreds of thousands of managers and executives. Much of this knowledge is shared—in a way that is distinct from the typical university department, professional association, or consultancy. CCL is not simply a collection of individual experts, although the individual credentials of its staff are impressive; rather it is a community, with its members holding certain principles in common and working together to understand and generate practical responses to today’s leadership and organizational challenges.
The purpose of the series is to provide managers with specific advice on how to complete a developmental task or solve a leadership challenge. In doing that, the series carries out CCL’s mission to advance the understanding, practice, and development of leadership for the benefit of society worldwide. We think you will find the Ideas Into Action Guidebooks an important addition to your leadership toolkit.
Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE BRIEF
Balance isn’t an issue of time, but an issue of choice. It’s about living your values by aligning your behavior with what you believe is really important.
Aligning your behavior with your values is much like any other developmental experience; the basic process involves assessment, challenge, and support. You need to determine where you are, define where you want to go, and then put into place the tools you need to get there.
Balance is about more than how you spend your time. It’s about how you live your life. It’s about recognizing that you have control over the choices you make and aligning your behavior with your values.
Balancing Act
People often define work-life balance as having equal or sufficient time for all they want to experience: career, family, friends, community, and leisure pursuits. Searching for the point of equilibrium or balance can become all-consuming and nonproductive.
But take a different look—one that says balance isn’t an issue of time, but an issue of choice. You choose how to use your resources—what to do with your time, energy, and passion. Balance is more than an assessment of where and how you spend your time. It’s about living your values by aligning your behavior—your choices and actions—with what you believe is really important.
A useful metaphor to keep in mind is a balance ball—the kind used for exercise and yoga. It looks as if it would be easy to sit on a balance ball, lift your feet off the floor, and balance your body. But the first few attempts are usually comical, if not disastrous. Success depends on a combination of purpose, practice, and patience. Eventually, you get a feeling of being centered. With attentive practice, you will be able to find your balance easily without having to think about your position or each move. It becomes a natural act.
Achieving balance or being centered in your life works in much the same way. Being in alignment or centered in life is about making clear choices that support your core values. The act of aligning your values and your life choices will achieve the same results as being centered on the balance ball. Doing so implies a dynamic process, just like sitting on the ball. You must constantly reassess your life, your challenges, and the consequences of your choices.
Values are the beliefs or feelings that are important enough to drive our decisions about how we behave.