an unhealthy balance
I forget where I heard or read it the other day, but it was the idea that:
Maybe we don’t need balance to have a healthy life.
You’re always hearing: get enough sleep, create that harmonious work/life balance, work hard / play hard.
But what if, in order to achieve what we truly want, that next level…you have to ditch the balance for a while and work unwaveringly, with a one track mind, on getting there? Focus, all day every day, on achieving that goal, making money through your business, studying for that exam. Stay up late working, wake up early to get a head start. Not have a social life or “play hard” for a while. Just work.
If you had that kind of passion for what you’re doing, or you knew, somehow, that it was going to pay off - would all that dedication be worth it? Or, as Carrie Bradshaw might put it…is an unhealthy obession really…healthy?
My coworker brought this up in his own way yesterday in our sales meeting. He’s been in radio for 30+ years and his passion for what we’re selling, amazingly, does not dwindle. Sales is a hard business in general, and to make real money selling radio ads he said you have to be obsessed: with the idea you’re selling, reaching the right decision maker, convincing them to buy it…you have to not only believe it in but not stop until it’s sold.
I would imagine people like Steve Jobs, Tom Petty, Ruth Bader Ginsberg and J.K. Rowling obessed over their work/music/studies/books. Probably didn’t do a whole lot else, at least in the early days. That’s why they have created unmatched lasting legacies.
As I sit here on the cusp of growing my yoga business into a more official and sustainable entity, I already know that it will fail if I don’t dedicate an absorbinate amount of time to finding clients, refining the product and committing to marketing it. I know that I will always play a lot of roles in life, as a saleswoman (for now), wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend. But there is a role right now that I want to wholeheartedly dive into - and that’s entrepreneur.
It’s a role that’s evolved after years of enjoying yoga as a passion and side hustle. It’s a calling that can no longer be denied. I’m not even looking for clients half the time when they come my way!
If you want something bad enough, there’s got to be sacrifice involved. I wouldn’t know from experience yet but I admire the people that do.
I do feel like I have a little practice in the subject being pregnant, though: do I want to do hot yoga in the morning and drink wine at night? Yes. But I want to have a healthy baby way more. That’s an easy decision to make.
My hope is that the love that I have for the career I’m creating also will balance out the sacrifice. So I guess the equilibrium won’t be totally off.
My coworker nodded to a few other reps in our meeting, calling them “animals” when they’re pitching something they’re passionate about.
I’m ready to be an animal. I want to dedicate my time and energy to a career that has more or less already chosen me. I am deciding to choose it back.
And when I’m leading 20 person yoga retreats in Morocco, I will sleep in. I will play hard. And I will breathe deeply into the meaningful and authentic life that I worked so hard to create for myself and my family.
I’m actively manifesting an incredible and inclusive yoga community and I would be so honored if you came along for the ride.
