The Balanced Life, Huntsville Alabama

I am so excited to be writing my first blog post with The Balanced Life!  I was unsure of which direction I wanted to take my first blog until a message came to me, surprisingly, while I was watching an episode of Chopped on The Food Network.  If you haven’t seen it, the show consists of three very short rounds that chefs compete in, in which they have to put together a complete meal based out of a basket of food that is picked for them.  While watching the show one evening I realized that there are some real life lessons being exhibited if you pay attention.

 

1.Something delicious can come from what seems like a mess of ingredients.  The surprise of the chefs’ faces when they open the baskets of ingredients is always amazing because the ingredients never make sense.  Yet despite being given the most random, disconnected ingredients, those chefs put together something delicious.  There are going to be times that arise in our lives that we will be thrown random ingredients and can’t make the connections of how anything positive could come from such a disjointed situation.  However, if we slow our thinking down and take one step at a time, we can work with what life hands us to make something pretty amazing.

 

2.Don’t assume what people are expecting/thinking.  So many times on the show, contestants would make assumptions about what the judges would be expecting because they have watched shows before. We have all heard in life what assuming does and all to often I think that we continue to assume in various relationships at home, work, school, etc.  Assuming is one of the biggest pitfalls in any relationship, a simple question and opening up the lines for healthy communication could change the outcome of a situation. Instead of assuming what people are expecting of you ask for clarification.  

 

3.Keep things simple.  Time and time again on the show chefs would over complicate their dish which would result in running out of time to complete the dish or forgetting to use some of the required ingredients.  I know many of us know the saying K.I.S.S.: Keep It Simple Sweetie (the polite version) but how many actually apply it.  I know I find when I over complicate a situation the stress increases, blood pressure rises, productivity as well as my attitude, goes down.  

 

4.Time management is key. Chefs run out of time frequently on this show because they didn’t prioritize and plan which results in high tension and mistakes.  I hear so many people say that they don’t have enough time in the day and struggle to complete their daily tasks.  When further discussing what prevented them from completing their tasks it typically comes out that no plan was made and no prioritizing of tasks took place.  Getting in the habit of planning and prioritizing could prevent unnecessary stress from becoming a part of your day and increase your productivity and motivation. 

 

If you connect with struggling in any of these areas, give us a call (256.258.7777) or send an email to info@thebalancedlifellc.com.  Now is the time to learn to communicate, keep it simple, organize, and make something great!