Juggling act all part of the fun

By Tyler Maher

Oct 4, 2022

Juggling act: How can one eat five vegies a day, sleep eight hours a night, exercise four times a week, excel professionally and, most importantly, take care of your family when there are only 24 hours in a day? Photo by HEDAYATULLAH AMID

In a digital age where the world never sleeps, how can we balance work, family, relationships and health — both mental and physical — and somehow not spontaneously combust in the process?

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If you find the answer, please let me know.

But in all seriousness, there is an expectation in these modern times that we can keep all of the juggling balls of life in the air at one time.

I wouldn’t say it is impossible to do so, but it is certainly impossible to do so for any extended period of time.

I’m not exactly the shining light when it comes to the balancing act of life.

I work in an industry that never stops and have two children that don’t either.

My gym membership pings out of my bank account like a faraway dot on a submarine radar, shouting all it can at me in the seconds of attention it garners from the notification until the dial turns once more.

Most of my family live on the other side of the country and I don’t call them nearly enough — although they do hear plenty about my fantasy sport teams.

And my wife — I’m still gleefully getting used to that term — Grace and I have as many date nights as hens have teeth.

But what I have learned over the journey is that, rather than looking at juggling as the act of keeping all of the balls in the air, you have to see it for what it really is.

It really is the act of not letting any ball hit the ground.

Think about it. Picture yourself juggling. Yes, at some points, all of the balls might be in the air. But never are they all at the apex of their curve — in fact, half of the time they land safely in your hands.

You have to apply that logic to all of the tasks of life.

Sometimes, you’ll be fielding a work call with one hand, feeding the dog with the other and all the while watching your toddler try and climb onto the couch just so they can hurl themselves back off it — in other words, all of the balls are in the air.

But on other occasions, like when your children are safely tucked into bed and you and your spouse are relaxing on the couch binge-watching your latest favourite show, it might just feel like the momentum of a few of those juggling balls has slowed to a near-stop.

To cut through the waffle, it can sometimes be as simple as this — dedicate most of your focus to the aspect of your day that most needs it at any one time and remember to rotate accordingly.

As long as you do that effectively, the rest of the show will keep moving as well.

Tyler Maher is the editor of the Shepparton News

This story orginally appeared in Don Magazine. You can find the full publication at https://www.sheppnews.com.au/features-and-magazines/don-magazine/