A few weeks ago, I had the honor of returning to my Alma Mater (Go BU!) to be one of the alumni guest speakers for current students entering various health professions. It was such an inspiring night, to network with other Alums who have made amazing strides in their careers, and to speak to students who I know will do the same. I think it was good for me also…to have to reflect on my career over the last (almost) ten years, because it’s been a whirlwind, to say the least! One of the questions I was asked a few times was how to achieve work/life balance. Which made me wonder: “do people think I have work/life balance??” 🤔

(Heh. At least I can pretend well, I guess?? )

But the thing is, I actually do have balance. And you probably do too…definitely more than you think you do. Don’t get me wrong…most days I don’t feel balanced. I often wonder if I should be doing more in one area of my life, or I just feel downright disorganized sometimes. But the advice I gave to the students is what I know I put into practice, even if I’m not always aware of it: 

Not every day is balanced. Some days I focus more on my Personal Training/Health Coaching business. Some days on my career as an Occupational Therapist. And some days, I say forget it all, and I just enjoy playing blocks and baking cookies with my baby boy. Some days I get the dishes and the laundry done, and some days it piles up. I meal prep like a maniac on Sunday, and then I don’t feel like cooking for a week. But what I do know is that, at the end of the week, we are all fed and we’ve eaten on clean dishes (huge props to my husband also…if you know us, you know he’s really the chef around here). I’ve showed up to work and managed to write out my workouts for the week. I’ve made beautiful memories with my family, I’ve been present as a mom and wife and a friend as best I could. Not every day has been balanced, but over the course of a week, I have done something to address every area in my life that is a priority (notice…I didn’t mention vacuuming or ironing. I definitely neglect some things!). And if I haven’t, there’s always next week. Just like I tell my clients, I’m always striving to make progress, but as long as I’m heading in the right direction, I’m not looking to be perfect. 
I’m not sure what made me write this post, but it could be the upcoming crazy busy holiday season. I hope you all stay kind to yourselves when things start piling up…we could all use a little more of that 🙌