The Neverending Balancing Act
On Saturday I spoke to a small group of bloggers at Blog Indiana about “Balancing Blogging and Bedlam”. It was a great opportunity for me to search my heart, my motives, and my priorities, while I prepared my talk. Balance is something we ALL struggle with, isn’t it? Whether it’s work/family life/leisure/being a student/faith/friendships/ministry/serving others/blogging…it’s a lot to juggle everyday.
Does balance even exist? Perhaps not. After all, if everything was perfectly balanced, wouldn’t that mean that we were just doing “okay” in each category in life? I don’t know about you, but I don’t like being average. Average is boring. I’m not satisfied with getting a “C” in every area of life. I like to do things well – to my best ability.
So what does that mean in my daily life?
Can I excel at everything? Nope.
Can I meet everyone’s expectations and needs? Probably not.
Can I swing it all? Not so much.
Does that make me a failure? Maybe not.
I think it all comes down to my priorities, versus my efforts to balance it all. What really truly matters in my life? Is God being glorified in my life? Is He my #1? Does everything fall in place after my faith?
These are the things I’ve been working through this week. Thanks for your patience with me, as I re-evaluate where blogging falls in my priorities. Blogging is something I truly enjoy. It’s a way for me to connect with others, a way for us to remember this unique journey with quadruplets, a creative outlet to contribute to our family’s financial needs, and its led to so many other wonderful opportunities.
I’m thankful for this outlet, and I’m thankful for your constant encouragement. Thank you for understanding, for listening through the computer screen, and for your constant love for our family.
I’ll return shortly. And hopefully, I’ll be better for stepping back, catching up, and re-starting.
Love this Jen! Love you!! Thanks for sharing your heart and I totally agree w/priorities vs. balance! I don’t want to be just “ok”:)
Thanks for your encouragement on this, Mandi! Love your spirit and your faithful friendship!
That’s one of the good things about the Internet – the way we can support each other that we never could before. As much as we enjoy your posts, we also understand how hard balancing a very full life can be. Taking “vacations” from different areas of our lives are necessary sometimes in order to re-balance the other areas. We all do it, so take all the time you need, we”ll still be here.
So thankful for your support, Julie. Great to have someone who understands!
Kudos to you! This is a great thing for all of us to consider.
One thing I’m grateful for is finding friends like you through this “crazy blog world”, so whether you post more or less often, I’m glad to call you friend!
Pleasure is all mine, Punkinmama! I’m thankful for our conversations and listening to me as I work this out…let’s have IRL time soon!
Sorry I missed your session…and all of day 2. Would have been fun to hang out more.
And I say GOOD. FOR. YOU. I used to try to write at least 4 times a week. But as the toddler got older I just couldn’t get a free moment to think up interesting or witty or introspective thoughts. And I’d rather write 1 great post a week than 4 posts of turds. I never ever fault anyone who steps away from the screen in favor of real life and priorities. Now, if only I could do that myself…as I read thru google reader while I’m about 5 mins late from having to leave to pick up the kids from school.
Good for you for facing these questions. Most of us ignore them and settle for “okay” a lot. Thanks for reminding us to pay more attention to our choices and priorities!
You post more than just about any blog out there. It must be exhausting, and it must take a lot of time. If you post less often, we’ll all understand (and we’ll still read every word!). Do what’s best for you and your family. We’ll understand!
Hmmm, I’m thinking I may need to accept the “teeter-totter” that is life instead of the balance beam. I’d LOVE to do it all right all of the time… but that’s not happening. AND… I don’t want to to one thing poorly all of the time so that I can do something else well all of the time. So, maybe the teeter-totter will be sufficient. Maybe.
I think that this is something that just about every blogger struggles with. It’s definitely something I enjoy, but it can take over my life if I let it. I just have to make sure and make boundaries for myself and to not put blogging first.
I really enjoyed your session at BlogIndiana – it felt so therapeutic to know that we’re all struggling with this, that we’re all feeling like we’re dropping a ball somewhere. Enjoy your time away and we’ll be here when you’re ready to come back!