“Life is journey not destination.” Is that helpful?

Should we focus on our goals/destinations or the quality of our journeys towards those goals?

The argument is that if one focuses on the value/quality of that journey with workability in mind, and the goal as an aim, one may end up with that goal plus more perhaps.

Consider the goal is for aiming, and value/quality of our journey towards the goal, the primary focus.

The mistake that we can all fall into is to fuse with our goals too much, and not checking in with our values as we move towards those goals. This may at times, leads to actions that go against our values, and hence, may lead to inner disharmony, inner conflict and unhappiness.

Be careful of that trap….

3 human needs to thrive

In life, when we have too much stability, certainty and routine with everyday being the same, it can lead to boredom and stagnancy.  Growth, newness, and creativity can then suffer. 

And at the same time, having too much newness and growth without good stability can create more chaos and drama.

Like a tree needing a balance of water, soil, water and sunlight to thrive, we as humans need stability (like soil), good relationship/connection (like water), and growth/newness (like sunlight). 

Too much of any one thing and not enough of another can cause problems.

So if a tree is not thriving, make sure it has a good balance of soil, water and sunlight.

For humans to thrive, we need a balance of stability, good relationships/connection, and a healthy dose of newness/growth/creativity.

Should we change the words “work life balance”

The words “work life balance” may need to be changed perhaps as it implies “work” is not “life” which it is.

Maybe more accurately is a “balance between human doing vs human being”.

Human doing = zooming in, judging, and taking action.

Human being = zooming out, observing without judgement and simply perceiving to gather more data perhaps.

Too much doing without being leads to doing without clarity.

Too much being/observing without doing leads to little impact.

The right combination of doing and being leads to “flow” perhaps.  

 In “flow”, we may have more sustainable energy to go for a long time without burnout.

Homeostasis to prevent work burnout

I often think about homeostasis when it comes to the human condition. 

Body temperature too high = problem.

Too low = problem.

Electrolytes too high = problem.

Too low also = problem.

Too much sugar = problem.

Not enough sugar = problem.

Too much money = problem.

Too little money can also be a problem.

Too much certainty = problem.

Not enough certainty = problem.

So too much work can be a problem.

Too little work can also be a problem.

Too much holidays = problem.

Not enough holidays can also be a problem.

Homeostasis is different for different people and at different stages of their lives and context. The problem is, like diabetics with poor sugar homeostasis, some folks have poor “work homeostasis” and are unaware until it’s too late. 

Like diabetes, prevention is better than cure. 

Don’t wait for the “end stage” or “late stage” to do something about it.