What is balance? Really?

The biggest thing I decided at the end of last year I wanted to work on most this year is balance. In particular finding the way to do everything I want to do without letting anything slip. My wife will tell you I'm trying to be Superman and doing too much, but I truly believe I am capable of both achieving everything I want to achieve and still enjoy the little things.

So lets start with everything that would be included in my ideal life, in no particular order:

• Make my companies successful
• Get out of debt
• Be known as a great web developer
• Complete my Uni degree
• Play Guitar/music in a band
• Hapkido
• Rock climbing
• Compete at a high age grouper level in Triathlon and Cycling
• Play hard
• Be a great friend
• Be a loving son and family member
• Be a loving husband (and maybe someday, dad)

In the past my biggest mistake I think is just trying to do everything now. Ultimately I have paralyzed myself and made a lot of things worse. Hence the weight gain for example.

To be honest, I don't know exactly how I'm going to manage this right now but I am trying something different this time round. In fact I got the idea from web development. The term is progressive enhancement. For a start, instead of just planning out my day and trying to do it all, I'm adding everything one at a time. Find balance, live with it for a while, add something else. Then rinse and repeat.

So far this is showing where I am going wrong when it is still possible to fix it, rather than crashing and burning. For example, coming back from a long Xmas break, I have started trying to exercise at least 3 times a week. Now 3 times a week isn't going to get me to my goals quickly but it is a start and also, did I mention how unfit I am. But already in just the first two weeks of this, my work in slipping. I haven't been anywhere as productive as I was without the exercise pre Xmas.

So now I know, before I try and bring the music back in, I know that being productive for 40-50 hours a week needs to happen first.

I'll let you know how I go but I am keen to hear from anyone (working mothers for example) out there about how they manage to juggle many things at once.