Spirituality At Work

Aligning the Fulcrum

By Woodeene Koenig-Bricker

My son’s best friend’s older brother was a very precocious child and some of the things that he said would astonish me. When he was about 6, he informed me that I shouldn’t be letting my son and his brother play on a make-shift teeter-totter because “the fulcrum wasn’t centered.” He was correct; it wasn’t centered, but because I was older and a bit wiser, I knew that it didn’t have to be precisely balanced to be safe.

I often think about that when I consider finding the balance between work, personal, family, community and church responsibilities. It isn’t always a matter of having the fulcrum perfectly aligned, but it is important to find a safe balance.

Of course, that sounds very good when you read it, but it’s much harder in real life. People and projects have a way of taking as much time and energy as you are willing to give them. And the squeaky wheel really does get the grease a lot of the time.

This month, I challenge you to look at the areas in your life and see where you might be unbalanced.

Work: Can you separate your home life from your work? Do you always have your cell phone on, your blackberry at the ready, a pile of work at hand? Do you spend all your time either at work or thinking about work? Or conversely, do you get by doing as little as possible and cut as many corners as possible? Neither extreme is healthy…nor balanced.

Personal: We are taught to be self-sacrificing, but sometimes we forget that we have to have something to sacrifice. Even Jesus went off by himself or with friends for renewal. He wasn’t always at everyone’s beck and call. Do you take time every day for yourself? Even if it’s reading the paper with a cup of coffee or spending an extra 2 minutes in the shower, it’s important to give yourself permission to have a slice of the day.

Family: This is a tough one for most of us because it never seems like we are giving our families enough time or enough quality time. Part of the reason is because everyone in the family has busy schedules and just finding time to be together can be a challenge. One way to figure out if you have balance in this area is to keep track of the time you spend one on one with each person in your family. Unless you have someone with special needs, you should be able to see fairly quickly if you are neglecting one person by spending too much time with another. And if you don’t spend any one on one time with family members, well, then it’s clear something is way out of balance.

Community: This is an area where personal preference plays a major role. Perhaps you are the sort who really enjoys being involved in civic affairs. Or not. No matter how you feel about community involvement, certain things are important—such as voting. Are you doing your civic duty at whatever level you feel comfortable?

Church: The temptations here lie in extremes—either showing up only on Sunday morning and dashing away before anyone spots you or spending so much time volunteering at the Church that your family has to put a picture of you on the dining room chair to remember what you look like. God does call us to use our talents for the greater good of our Church family, but how much, how often and in what capacity is something that takes discernment through prayer. Of all the areas this may be the most difficult since doing “God’s work” can easily seem like the most important thing of all, or become the area we cut the most slack.

I wish I could offer you a neat formula for achieving these balances, but like the off-center fulcrum that I knew was still workable, finding that balance is something you have to do for yourself. 

Do take the time, however. It will be well worth it in the long term.

Originally in The Journalist, the official newspaper of the Catholic Press Association.