Finding Balance - What's On Your Plate?




Often you know what you want to focus your energy and time on, but there is nowhere to fit it into your schedule. Your plate is already too full. This tool and audiocast will help you investigate and analyze what's on your plate. This is an opportunity to explore what you are dedicating your time and energy to so that you can mindfully choose if it needs to stay or go.

By objectively looking at this, you can start to recognize your patterns and your priorities.


When you take a step back, you are able to look at the bigger picture, and then decide what fills you up, what drags you down, what you want to keep, and what you are ready to let go of. 


Letting Go is Key

Letting go is an important part of this exercise. Sometimes, by taking something off your shoulders or by lowering it as a priority, you are instantly filled up. Taking something off of your plate might actually give you the space to prioritize those things on your plate that you want to pursue, but never could find the time. Going back to the idea of being overwhelmed and underwhelmed at the same time, this is an awesome exercise for us to see what we have put on yourselves unnecessarily


Directions

  1. On a piece of paper, draw a big circle that looks like a plate
  2. Write down all the things for which you’re responsible each day. 
  3. Write the things that you currently prioritize inside of the plate. 
  4. Write the things that don’t currently get prioritized in the space outside of the plate. 
  5. Circle the things/people you feel are taking up your time and energy. 
  6. Underline the things that nourish you. 
  7. Take a look at what is circled and underlined. Do the two compliment each other?

Do it Again

Complete a second round of this exercise, but this time…

  1. Circle the things that you want to dedicate your time and energy to
  2. Add things into your day that can serve as a way to reset, nourish yourself, or bring peace.
  3. Cross things off your plate that don’t nourish you, provide reset, or aren’t necessary.


  • What would you gain by letting go?
  • What do you lose by holding on?