Success in Balance

I just read this interesting article by John Dvorak. The interesting thing is it is a PC Mag article. His whole premise is that phones have not made life better, in fact in many ways it has created some misplaced priorities. At least that’s my take. At first I didn’t agree, but the more I thought about it the more I think he is right. A friend and I had an e-mail conversation earlier today about the latest smart phones and PDAs. We really like the promise of convenience, but is it a reality? Do they allow me to work from the beach and thus allow me to spend more time at the beach? Or a ballgame or someplace else I enjoy? The reality is they could, but instead I can now work from the beach when I would have been at the beach anyway. So the reality is they enable work to creep into my private life…not a good thing.

Years ago scholars predicted with all the improvements we would be able to work 20 hours a week. But what has really happened? All the improvements mean we can now work 70 hours a week.

Gadgets can help with success in balance, but they must be used strategically. So instead of running out to get the next gadget, think about how it will make your life better…I mean really better.

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The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Cheer up: You hold key to being happy
Think about three good things that happened to you each day before you go to sleep…

People keep doing it on their own because it’s immediately rewarding, said Seligman colleague Acacia Parks. It makes people focus more on good things that happen, which might otherwise be forgotten because of daily disappointments, she said.

Miller said that the exercise made her notice more good things in her day, and that now she routinely lists 10 or 20 of them, rather than just three.

Great article with some great perspectives. We are what we think and when we think happy we eventually become happy

Sort of like Thanksgiving every day!

The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Having money helps, to a point

Daniel Kahneman, a Nobel Prize winner and Princeton economist, and colleagues recently declared that the notion that making a lot of money will produce good overall mood is “mostly illusory.”They noted that in one study, people with household incomes of $90,000 or more were only slightly more likely to call themselves “very happy” overall than were people from households making $50,000 to $89,999. The rates were 43 percent versus 42 percent, respectively.

Definitely interesting to think about this article. What role does money play in your happiness? Sure it does not cure issues, but it can do other things. I suspect if they accounted for other issues, such as marital state, family relationships etc. they could have explained more of the difference. That’s why we all need balance.

ESPN.com - NCF - Curry: The pain of discipline vs. the pain of regret

No one is pressing for the solution to this growing menace. No one is putting it into context. “The coach must take responsibility,” pontificates the former coach. “Fire the coach” scream the boosters who, by the way, always scream, “Fire the coach”. “I wish the coach would teach my son how to behave,” exclaim the parents. The paltry one-game suspension by conference officials would be a bad joke, but is made even worse by certain Miami boosters, who are suggesting that all this is a badge of honor, and “returns Miami to its rightful place in football.” “Just what our program needs right now,” they crow in their delirium.

Wow, what an incredible article. Curry hits the ball out of the park. Have you been watching the UM-FIU mess? Pretty sorry state of affairs. I was just lamenting with a colleague about the total lackm of leadership we are seeing in society right now. Everyone is focused on the hear and now. No one wants to deal with the long term. No one wants to pay the price now for success later. But as I look at it more closely I am not real happy about what I see in my own life. Too often I make the easy choice instead of the tough one that has longterm implications. What about you?

Actually, I have more thoughts about this article, but will leave it at this now.

Darren Hardy Blog: Stress-Free Life (2b of 10)

Every emotion you have is good or bad by the label YOU have given it. In the grand scheme of things, there really is no good or bad. It is just an illusion created by the opinion you or others (that you have accepted) have given it.

Good post about stress by Darrn Hardy of TSTN, stress is the result of illusions we create and how we deal with those illusions. It just shows how we can better handle our stress. Good stuff from TSTN as usual

What You Can Do When Guilt Affects Your Career - - Work / Life Balance from Monster.com

Different types of guilt can surface in relation to your career. If you’re in a situation like Jackie’s, you may be suffering from “I’m being selfish” guilt, because you feel bad about putting your own needs first. “How dare I…” may lead some of your thoughts, as in “How dare I contemplate a lower-paying job when I’m successful in my current, higher-paying one?” Or, “How dare I consider going back to work when I have little ones at home?”

Exploring some of the resources at Monster I saw this. What a great piece! I don’t know about you, but guilt has impacted me in all kinds of ways. Perhaps becasue of the way I was raised, but reading this article helped me see that I am not alone and gave me some good ideas to correct my thinking. Perhaps it will help you too.

CNN.com - The mean value of the ‘Nasty Boss’ - Jul 7, 2006

Nor does Stanford professor Robert Sutton, an organizational psychologist. He’s developed a whole philosophy, presented in an upcoming book, on bosses who are, well, jerks: They’re a drain on society. They shouldn’t be hired in the first place, and if they won’t change their ways, they should be fired.

This article is fascinating and it makes me want to see the movie and by the book that is soon to be published…or perhaps I will listen to it. Anyway, as we seek success in balance it reminded me that it is not just an individual balance that we should seek, but corporate/communal balance. Often mean bosses can have their life in “balance” while forcing everyone around them to be out of balance. So are they really in balance?

What about you? What about me? As I seek to get balance in my life do I force others out of balance? Actually, as I reflect I realize that when I am out of balance I often cause others to be out of balance. If I do too much for others I allow them to not do enough for themselves. Remember what we do impacts more than just ourselves.

FOXNews.com - The Lesson of TGI Friday’s: Never Take the Customer for Granted - Business And Money | Business News | Financial News

The lesson is that you can become a victim of your own success, unless you always keep in mind that you are not responsible for your success — your customer is.

Hum. So how does this apply to us personally? I think for me personally it indicates that just because things start going my way (hopefully they will soon I should not become complacent. You know, sort of taking it for granted. In a sense to truly have success in balance there always has to be a hunger for self improvement. For businesses it means always looking out for the customer. For individuals it means always looking to make yourself better.

FOXNews.com - Study: Money Won’t Make You Happy - Health News | Current Health News | Medical News

Life satisfaction does tend to increase as a nation’s per-capita income rises. But there is little increase in life satisfaction once per-capita income goes above $12,000 a year.

Well we have all known this, but now there is a research study that supports it. Many seemingly “successful” people committ suicide in the prime of their life. Life is a balancing act at all income levels. But for some reason we always think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. We selectively see the good things, but forget the bad. Wealth fits in the same place. What are the keys to finding the balance? To being happy & content? Some days I think I know, and others I know I have no clue. Some days I have balance and others I am like an overstuffed washer, bouncing from side to side across the floor. What about you?

Can we learn something from this study? Can it benefit us or just reinforce what we already knew?

Why The Web Is Hitting A Wall

Why are people saying no? Some worry, after hearing about online scams and digital viruses, that the Net isn’t safe. Others swear that, for all the brouhaha about the Net’s ability to enhance communication, e-mail and instant-message chats break down social interaction. But the broader issue is that — despite innovations that make it possible for people to call up their bank accounts with a few clicks of the mouse, watch the latest episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on a PC, and play online games against competitors in Korea, France, and South Africa — the Internet remains too complicated and costly for a huge swath of American society. Doreen Pappas, a 39-year-old who works in the finance industry in New York City, isn’t willing to go through the headache of picking out a computer, having it delivered, and setting up an online connection. “It’s a hassle and it’s expensive,” Pappas says. “I would rather spend the money on fun things.”

I came across this article in Business Week and decided to post it to my other blog, Digital Stakeholders, but as I thought about it some more, I realized it really belongs here. Sure the article identifies some technology barriers, but many people are realizing that technology can impact the balance they have in life. Boy do I respect these people. Years ago I thought they were just ludites, but they got something I missed. While they were enjoying time with people they loved, I was busy checking e-mail.

How many people do you know that can not go away for a weekend without checking their e-mail? Or take it one step further, how many go on vacation and leave their cellphone at home? Are we really that important? Do people really “need” to get ahold of us that bad?

For me it has come down to just saying no. I have to realize that it is an addiction. But not a simple addiction with one dimension, but several. There is the need to “be part of the group”, I would hate to find out that I missed something. To “be needed”, it is nice when I am needed and can help people. To “make everyone happy”, I mean what if they had to wait until Monday for an answer? So for me I just have to say no to technology at times and yes to more important thing, like my wife, my kids, my sanity….what about you? What do you need to say no too? Better yet, what do you need to say Yes too? Remember, it is not really success unless it is in balance!