The Power of A Balanced Routine

We reached out to a former congressman and former provincial governor (we mention this as context) who does a lot of work officially and at home. He needed something to keep him in focus, and he found it in having a balanced routine while we were in "lock-down" due to covid19.

 

Here's what our public servant said:

"The power of a balanced routine that one can instill is habit forming. ECQ [enhanced community quarantine] is like being under house arrest or even in minimum security prison. So to go through this and not degenerate physically and mentally, I had to make sure I keep to a routine...

"So there’s exercise, home workout or even jogging in our parking lot, then helping frontline workers, and to have a sense of purpose, cooking for our security guards and utility [personnel]. It was also a learning process coz I tried cooking new dishes. 

"[I] also had to be productive in our work by having online meetings with staff and people we work with, webinars, and discussion groups. Then there’s taking care of the dogs, cleaning up, fixing broken things, checking on what’s in the stockroom for things that could be recycled, and doing public service by helping in fund drives for health workers back home. [I am] also making the habit of taking care of myself - eating healthy, [taking] vitamins, etc. 

"So I had to keep that routine daily. Mahirap coz sometimes we lapse into just lounging, TV binging, being a slave of the gadget. I think I can’t avoid these but, I really had to strike the balance by mustering the will and discipline to keep to the routine."

Need we write more?

If you also have many people to take care of and tasks to accomplish, you must have a balanced routine beyond what many call "work-life balance". It's also about remembering that humans are physical beings as well as spiritual, have various relationships as well as financial needs.

How have you been balancing your life?