I am a junkie, pure and simple. And I get a buzz from it! I get such a high from my drug of choice and I can get you in on the high too. If you want it???
My drug of choice, my very own legal high and something I started doing years ago is helping other people. That’s right I get such a buzz from helping people like you to get the joy back in your life from getting that thing right called balance.
That’s right; My names Nikki Hanson and I am a Balance Junkie!
I help people just like you to rejuvenate your energy, improve your friendships, relationships, reduce stress, increase motivation and see their family more and have amazing businesses or careers. I’ve put together 8 simple tips to help you become a Balance Junkie too!
You’ve heard of the words work/life balance right? Well even the words send me into a yawn. So from now on instead let’s call it being a Balance Junkie. Let’s describe it as someone who totally has their sh1t together and have smashed their work/life balance out of the park! Someone who has total energy, passion for life, bounces out of bed to do something they love and most of all feels total joy in their lives again and has the most amazing relationships.
Who does this remind you of?
Who do you aspire to be like?
For me it’s someone like Richard Branson, Anthony Robbins or Oprah Winfrey. You can read all about their problems, their issues they have come through, the adversities, the money problems they’ve encountered, the strains on their relationships, the living in one bedroom apartments, health problems and being overweight but look how they’ve turned their lives around.
Just imagine for a moment that you are living their life.......
What is it that you would enjoy the most? For some of you the draw to living this life would be the things that they have; the beautiful homes in far off destinations, the Bentleys, Ferraris, the Jimmy Choo’s in a variety of colours or the fact they can travel the world at the drop of a hat.
For others of you it would be the amazing relationships that they can have as a result, the taking your partner out to amazing restaurants any time you like, getting married in style, paying off your parents mortgage so they can retire early, being in the position where you can benefit your friends with the knowledge you have from creating this amazing life. Imagine not having to go to a job you dread every day and no longer having the Sunday night feeling! Imagine going to a job you love or creating a business you have always dreamt of or building your existing business beyond your wildest dreams.
Imagine the focus you could have, the drive and determination that you know is in you but you just need time to nurture. Sound good?
So what is the difference between you and them?
They’re just people. Like me, like you. None of them started off with anything and were born as naked on the day as you and I were. So what is it about them that has enabled them to create these outstanding lives? Determination? Passion? A will to create something bigger than themselves? Confidence? Accountability? All of these and a ton more I’m sure.
However, THE most important thing they have done is they are all Balance Junkies!
They've nailed the work/life balance well and truly. Something Holly Willoughby said (a well-known UK TV personality) that has stuck with me for years. She has over £10 million in the bank, works on a morning TV show and countless other TV shows, she has 3 children, always looks amazing, has such a sparkle to her personality and a very happy looking husband!
She said:
“When I’m at work I’m fully at work and when I’m at home I’m fully at home”
I thought she must be on to something as I sat on my work laptop at 10pm at night, alone, feeling 10 years older than I was, eating a Marks & Sparks ready meal with a glass of vino dreading work the next day. It was at this point I knew things needed to change and no one else was going to do it for me so I began simply by creating a few ‘rules’ or ‘ritual’s for my life. These included not working after 7pm, being mindful and in the moment, doing an exercise that I love (Yoga), giving back by volunteering with the Prince’s Trust and to do at least 1 thing a day to fulfil my dream of having my own business.
Sounds so simple but it started me on my journey to being a fully-fledged Balance Junkie!
Does this all sound too familiar? Do you resonate with my story? Over the years I have helped countless clients with this problem and I’ve put together 8 tips which have helped them the most.
Read, enjoy but most of all implement these changes, you owe it to your family, your friends but most of all you
Here’s your 8 simple tips to becoming a fully-fledged Balance Junkie:
Tip 1: Press your Reset Button
Get off the rat wheel of life, stop the wheel spinning and decide what are the tasks that you can delegate or outsource? This can literally take 30 minutes, do it. There’s such great sites out here like Fiverr where you can get pretty much any freelance service you can think of for five quid! Tim Ferris’s book The 4-Hour Work Week really advocates outsourcing most of your life and I really recommend reading his book. Outsource your cleaning to give you a bonus 2 hours with the family, outsource your holiday booking to a good old fashioned travel agent or get a book keeper to process your receipts.
Get some daily rituals or standards in place such as not working after 7pm, do the exercise you love, sitting down and eating dinner with your family and not checking your phone after 10pm
Tip 2: Put your own oxygen mask on first
This literally needs tattooing on my forehead I say it that much to my clients. Wait! You said if the plane I was on was crashing I’d FOR SURE put the oxygen mask on my kid first? Then you’re both for it, simple!
You have to look after YOU first
How can you take care of your children, your partner, your business or your career if you’re permanently exhausted on the merry go round of life? If you take nothing else from these tips then PLEASE do just this one. Do the one thing that gives you joy every single day. It may just be 10 minutes of reading, a bath, watering the garden, putting on a face mask or meditation but do it and your body and mind will be so grateful to you. Take care of you first and you will be able to take care of others better.
Tip 3: Be present and in the moment
Being Mindful seems to be in vogue right now but basically it means you being aware and conscious of the present moment. Ignore what has happened in the past and switch off from the future. Go to Yoga, take 10 deep breaths, and really listen to your friend talking about how her husband forgot their anniversary. I mean really LISTEN and don’t just wait for your turn to talk and your friend will appreciate it more too. Go into the garden and smell the roses, listen to the birds, go for a mindful walk. You’ll feel a sense of calmness from it and it will give you greater clarity in your day.
Tip 4: Move more
You knew this was coming! You know the score, exercise more but keep up to date with what them in the know are saying about exercise or follow those that do (Joe Wicks anyone!?). A recent study says that doing just 3 bouts of brisk walking for 10 minutes is better than 10,000 steps so it doesn’t have to be as hard as you may think.
Anthony Robbins is an American coach and motivational speaker and I think he’s the best in the world at his game, his energy is always on fire and he has a trampoline (or rebounder which makes it sound cooler!) If he and NASA think it’s the best exercise going then I’m game and after 5 minutes on that I’m certainly ready for a G&T erm I mean lemon water! It gets the lymphatic system going which doesn’t get moving any other way which reduces the amount of toxins.
We don’t want to end up like the humans in the film Wall-E where they no longer have bones and float around on hover chairs (my own motivation!)
Tip 5: Categorise your life
I began categorising my life years ago when I felt overwhelmed. I had 20 tasks on my to-do list for that day and thought I’d never be able to get through them so almost gave up my day before 9am. I saw some patterns in my list so I decided to group them together and I have been doing this ever since. I now have a weekly goals list which keeps me focused for that week which then gets split into daily tasks. I also have monthly, quarterly, annual and beyond goals to keep me focused towards my future aspirations. Choose your own categories but if you want to use mine they are: Business, Education, Finances, Relationships and Fun. I always make sure on my weekly goals I have at least 1 thing on the fun list and so should you. Get some joy back in your life and act like a kid again!
Tip 6: Be grateful
Ever catch yourself thinking “If only I had this” or “why can’t I afford this”. STOP. What do you have instead? FOCUS on what you have rather than what you don't daily and I promise you that you’ll start thinking more positively.
Spend just 3 minutes every morning or evening thinking of 3 things that you are grateful for
Sometimes they can be the smallest things such as someone letting you cut in front of you in the supermarket when you had 1 item or having the best cup of coffee you’d had for a long time. This will change your mind-set in the long term and you’ll automatically start thinking more positively.
Tip 7: Streamline and Automate
How much time do you spend on Facebook or online? Well I’m not about to throw you off here as I get 80% of my business online but have you asked yourself how efficient you are as a result of your time online? There are apps such as Rescue Time to keep you focused and use your time online more effectively. Put a limit on how long you are logged on and stick to it. Taking just 5 days off Facebook has been found to increase your mood.
I have spent 15 years streamlining and automating businesses I can always find ways to speed up processes or how people are currently doing things and you should be able to as well.
Take an inventory of how your business is working and make changes to speed up how you are doing things
Pick the simple things to start with that can make big changes such as not multitasking as it slows you down, having a break once an hour to keep you focused and removing anything that is taking up unnecessary time such as waiting for suppliers or having all your client meets on one day and another day for writing as I do. Even just a tidy desk can speed you up!
Tip 8: Have fun!
You can’t be a true Balance Junkie if you’re not having fun. Again look at Richard Branson whose office is on Necker Island and he’s pretty much always smiling and having fun! Write a fun list, rewards list or a bucket list. Make sure that you reward yourself when you achieve something you set out to do; a meal out, a bunch of flowers or a new handbag. Psychologists for years have been studying the reward system and the reinforcement of it and the effect it has on your mind and body.
You will want to be more focused and achieve more if you know there’s something good for you at the end of it
Conclusion
Now that you know these simple 8 tips, you'll find it so much easier to keep a balance in your life that enables you to make the choices that you actually want..
Love
Nikki xx
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