The Year’s Most Inspiring Read
I’m listening to the audiobook version of Matthew Kelly’s Off Balance: Getting Beyond the Work-Life Balance Myth to Personal and Professional Satisfaction, and it’s probably the most inspiring title I’ve read (or listened to) so far this year.
Why? Because the author doesn’t just talk about how you can change your life, pursue your dreams, blah, blah, blah. He actually did it…and he changed his life in a way that makes sense to me. He talks about changing his whole life, taking into account both the personal and professional, which he says are integrally intertwined.
I like the idea of running away to a Caribbean island as much as the next gal, but the truth is that I’m probably not ever going to decide the benefits of island living outweigh the costs. In fact, I don’t even think changing addresses is worth the cost, at least not for the next few years–even though I’m a country girl at heart and have never felt quite settled in our suburban environment.
But, like Kelly, I’ve identified my priorities, and family is one of the top items on the list. So as long as it’s best for my family to stay where we are, here we’ll stay.
I’ve also identified creative writing as a top priority…and that one is easier to let slide. Kelly’s book gave me “mental ammunition” in my daily battle to prioritize my writing time.
The Balance Myth
Having examined the issue extensively, I have come to the conclusion that people don’t really need or want balance. As an idea, balance sounds desirable, but…if you delve a little further and get people talking about what that balance looks like, you will discover that what they want has very little to do with balance. – Matthew Kelly, Off Balance