The Art of Tilting
I want to share with you how I have been coping with a feeling of overwhelm lately, after reading a book about simplifying life by an author called Brooke McAlary.
Over the past two months I have been doing a university module and writing a chapter for a book. Both of these projects fill me with joy and I love to write. However, they were time consuming. They took up a lot of mental space and I needed to be boundaried with my time to meet my deadlines.
Usually I try to keep up with these projects whilst not letting anything else slip. So I would keep up with my allotment, meet friends, be with my family, go to yoga class and work. I thought this was balanced. This is not balance, this is a path to burn out.
In her book, Brooke invites us to practise the art of tilting. She explains that it is not possible to keep up all aspects of life continually and that life balance is a myth. Tilting involves accepting that sometimes, your time and attention tilts in favour of certain projects and pass times whilst others receive less attention.
So, whilst I tilted towards writing my book chapter and university assignment, the weeds have grown in the allotment and I have not made it to the gym much. This felt better, and calmer. I released any guilt around tilting away from the allotment and gym. Now, my writing projects are completed. I will be back to tackle those weeds with renewed enthusiasm and start attending more regular yoga classes at the gym.
Over the school holidays more tilting will happen as I tilt towards spending the precious summer holiday weeks with my son and less time at work or in my wellness business. This feels like balance. Releasing any worry about what I am tilting away from and focusing on the pleasure and productivity of what I am titing towards has helped me to release the feeling of needing to keep up with everything all the time.
I hope this inspires you to review your commitments over the summer and see if you need to tilt (guilt free) towards some aspects of life for a while.
