Psychological Flexibility and Committed Action are two concepts I am going to use to help me live a more balanced life this year. I decided on the theme “Balanced Life” a few weeks ago. I have been brainstorming on how I am going to shift my behavior. I can adjust my attitude or change my thinking.
However, I know I need to have more concrete plans. Following is a brief summery of my process. You can pick your own theme to work on and just substitute it in place of “Balanced Life.”
First. What is the meaning and value of a balanced life for me? Asking this will help you figure out what the underling connections are to your life. For example: a balanced life means I have more time for play, adventure, relationships, cooking and relaxation. All of which have an intrinsic value of pleasure. Oh joy!!! I don’t know about you, but pleasure adds vitality to my life.
Pick one from your list to use as a goal. I chose play.
Here is the next big question. What does play look like? Sounds easy enough to define. Then again, it is bigger than it looks. My list includes attending a play with friends, playing the piano, dancing, hiking, video games and so on and so forth. You get the idea. Are you beginning to see how useful it is to unpack an idea one piece at a time?
Do you have a list? Pick an activity from your list. I really like to play the piano.
Next question? How often and how long do I want to play the piano? It’s up to you to decide what works best for you. My goal is once a week for two hours. Or I can me flexible and play one hour twice a week.
We need to talk about barriers. There are two types of barriers to achieving goals. External and internal. An external barrier is not owning a piano. An internal barrier is the chatter in the head. Does the following sound familiar? “I don’t have time. I have to clean house. I am rusty. It’s too loud and the neighbors will complain. I’m no good at it.” I have a powerful tool called psychological de-fusion to manage this type of problem I will let you in on that secret later down the road. Or you can attend next week’s workshop.
Barriers can derail you. Remember you can get back on track.
If you are interested in learning more about creating a life that is filled with more vitality you can attend one of the my workshops. There is a list on the workshop page.
[…] Committed Action and Psychological Flexibility […]