How to Live a Balanced Life for a Better Day Every Day

Have you ever gone through a phase where it feels like life is just flying past you? Where each day seems like it’s slipping through your fingers, and you need a break?

We’ve all been there. Living a balanced life can often feel out of reach when we’re overwhelmed. But it doesn’t need to. Taking some simple steps to reset, plan ahead and embrace our own growth can make a huge difference when it comes to living a balanced life.

Five Easy Ways to Live a Balanced Life

Stay Organized with a Journal or Planner

Getting organized is always a great idea when you’re looking for a reset. In order to find more balance in your life you need to carve out time for yourself, plan ahead, and set goals.

A planner and/or a journal are two great tools for planning ahead. I use this one here.

A planner can be used to help you set goals and deliver on them. As well as keep track of your upcoming appointments, assignments and to-do’s. Being able to look ahead helps us to cultivate a well-balanced life.

A journal can help you to unpack your thoughts and feeling. They help us to problem solve and put aside our negative mindsets. And journaling has been used for thousands of years as record keeping, so you know it’s been time-tested.

Stick to a Self Care Routine

Developing a strong self care routine can be a huge asset when it comes to creating balance in our day to day lives. Self Care helps us to refocus our attention onto ourselves periodically making sure we are taking care of ourselves emotionally, spiritually, physically, and socially.

A self care routine is different for everyone. For one person self care might mean going to church weekly, running three times a week, and avoiding caffeine. For another person their self care routine might mean taking a weekly bubble bath, getting a monthly massage, and talking to their best friend on their commute to work.

One good rule of thumb for self-care is if you end up feeling guilty for skipping a certain activity because it makes you feel good or benefits your health, you might want to consider it self-care.

For me a few examples include journaling for mental health, limiting my caffeine consumption in the afternoons, and taking my medications every day.

25 Self Care Activities You can Do to Balance Your Life

1. Go for a walk.
2. Journal for five minutes.
3. Throw a dance party in your living room.
4. Put your phone away for a few hours.
5. Read a book by your favorite author.
6. Try out a new smoothie recipe.
7. Practice yoga at home.
8. Call your best friend.
9. Spend time outside.
10. Grow and nourish a plant.
11. Clean one problem area in your home while listening to your favorite play list.
12. Try out a new hobby.
13. Learn a new language.
14. Meditate to ease your mind.
15. Watch a feel good movie.
16. Have an at home spa day.
17. Take yourself out on a date.
18. Go get a massage, pedicure or manicure.
19. Switch out a cup of coffee for a cup of caffeine free tea.
20. Start your day with a glass of lemon water.
21. End your day with lavender in your diffuser as you fall asleep.
22. Play an instrument, or learn to!
23. Cook yourself a favorite dish or a new and exciting dish you’ve been wanting to try.
24. Take a nap in the middle of the day.
25. Write yourself a list of positive affirmations you can use when you’re having a rough day.

Cultivate a Growth Mindset

“Mind over matter,” I’m sure you’ve heard that saying. Our mindset is a huge indicator of how we live our day to day life.

“In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.”

Psychologist Carol Dweck

Growth mindset has been gaining popularity among psychologists, entrepreneurs, and academics around the world. The notion that we can learn anything through time and dedication can truly transform our lives.

By actively pursuing a growth mindset we are able to look at challenges in life as mere hurdles instead of mountainous road blocks.

How to Switch to a Growth Mindset

• Choose to celebrate growth, whether it’s your own or belongs to someone else. Giving yourself and others a pat on the back for a job well done increases our sense of accomplishment.
• When you run into a setback start to look at your challenges as a “not yet” instead of an “I can’t.” Begin looking at your challenges as opportunities.
• Become a life long learner and embrace learning new things!
• Set clear and concise goals for your self. Start taking steps towards them. When you meet a goal, celebrate it, and then start working on the next one.
• Embrace risks, sometimes we need to make a few educated risks to really make leaps and bounds to our goals. Get out of your comfort zone.
• Schedule time for reflection. Taking time to evaluate your efforts, challenges, and lessons learned is truly the embodiment of a Growth Mindset.

Practice Mindfulness Regularly to Live A Balanced Life

Creating a mindfulness practice is a great way to help balance your life. The definition of mindfulness is “being aware in the present moment.” People who adopt a mindful lifestyle have lower stress levels, better moods, and more gratitude!

Mindfulness is a key component to Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction or MBSR, was founded by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn. MBSR is an eight-week program that uses mindfulness techniques to lower stress levels and help reduce anxiety, depression, and pain.

Five Ways to Use Mindfulness Throughout Your Day

• Keep a Gratitude Journal- documenting things that you have gratitude for is a great way to balance your day. By showing appreciation for the good things in life we can better shift our mindsets towards positivity.
• Spend Time in Nature- getting outside for a walk, hike, or just to soak up some rays helps us live in the moment. By getting out of our home and focusing on the word around us we shift our attention to the natural world and away from our worries.
• Use your five senses! Take a moment to breathe in your surroundings and then complete the following exercise.
  • Name five things you can see.
  • And four things you can feel.
  • Name three things you can hear.
  • What are two things you can smell?
  • Name one thing you can taste.
• Try a guided meditation- following a simple guided meditation can be a great way to get intone with your breath and live in the moment.
• Mindfully Take Part in your Favorite Hobby- fully immerse yourself in your favorite hobby. Put away your phone and completely limit your outside distraction, allowing yourself to enjoy your activity to it’s fullest.

Add Movement into Every Day

Moving your body regularly is a good way to create more balance in your life. Getting more physical activity helps increase endorphins, cortisol, and blood flow while decreasing stress levels.

Not only is physical movement great for our bodies but it helps our minds as well. There’s no doubt that moving benefits your mental health. Having a healthy body and a healthy mind is a great way to live a balanced life.

5 Ways Movement Helps our Mental Health

• Decreases anxiety by reducing our “fight or flight” responses to stress trigger.
• Movement increases endorphins, the happy chemicals in the your body.
• Getting more movement increases the flow of oxygen in the body, increasing blood flow and helping our bodies to function more appropriately.
• Benefits of movement and exercise include increase body confidence and self-love.
• More movement can also mean more sleep! It can also mean higher quality sleep. Getting a good amount of high quality sleep helps regulate mood, emotions, and hormones which all effect your mental health.

Are you Ready to Live a Balanced Life?

The above steps are most effective when combined but using just one or two of these tips can easily put you on the path to live a more balanced life. Enjoy less stress, more mindfulness, and overall improved wellbeing.

What steps do you use to create balance in your daily life?