Balancing Is All About Navigating The Mind

The eternal question asked by people in all walks of life, irrespective of cast, creed & gender; irrespective of job or status. i.e. How to get in BALANCE?

It is asked in work & life, in business & play, in activity & rest, in thought & emotions, in obsession & suppression and so on.  It might come as a rude shock but there is nothing like a middle path. Run from the first person, who claims to give you the solution & run fast!

Since 'Balance' is about integrating two different or opposite dimensions in such a proportion, to consistently sustain it in harmony, unless the root of the contrary choices or feeling does not fade or die (which is not the question here) there is no single moment, no state of being or no action that is in absolute balance in the real world. There is no one-time or permanent fix, but there is an artistic way of handling any situation.

The Great Indian Tightrope Act

During my summer trips to Ajmer & Pushkar in Rajasthan, as a child, I remember being fascinated while watching the stellar feats performed by local artists balancing themselves on a tightrope, at a height, heavy objects being self-supported, blindfolded, etc. I noticed that during the Tightrope Act, famous to many small villages in India, the artist could never be precisely in the middle, he always, always, always leans to any one side either a tad to the left or tad to the right.

Despite being the most talented, putting best effort & deepest commitment to bring in balance, you will still find even the best artist performs at either 89% or 91% of imbalance on the Right Angle of balance.

And we face the same dilemma symbolically, having to balance at great heights, with obstacles of a different variety and despite our highest intent or best skills or strongest mindset, we are always tilted either little toward love or little toward fear, either a tad excited or a tad listless, slightly selfish or slightly selfless, either a streak of high or a streak of low, either a shade little light or a shade little dark.  

Implementing Balance in our life

Each one of us does the tight rope balancing act, daily and often, several times a day. We do so when faced with identifying priorities, making choices & implementing decisions. The trick to maintaining balance is in:

• Bringing in stability and control within the mind, which translates into balanced action, through self-discipline and grit

• Minimizing the sharp variances/ extremities of selected options, through extreme awareness regarding the impact that each step has on the end goal

• Operating consistently within your choices, through determination and fortitude

The art of balancing lies in REPEATEDLY managing the extremities of the mind ; the ability to select sustainable choices from the odds and completing the task with more stability and grip over limited time & resources, without succumbing to your own vulnerability.

Why is Balance needed?

- for consistency and sustainability to achieve any result - whether career advancement or weight loss

- to deliver longer-term results - whether implementing a 5 year plan or maintaining good health over time

- to allow repetition in success - in daily routine low-skill / high-value activities, at work or in family life

- to save you tons of energy otherwise wasted in thinking, when faced with the same choices repeatedly.

Balance is essential for peace. With Mastery over the Balancing Act, ensure you only just slightly quiver around the centre of action, in your next step on the tight rope of balance.