A Balanced Life

In research for a new book I am writing (stay tuned!) entitled The Empowered Performer, I have turned my focus to play and how that can inform our performances and help us overcome stage fright.  What I am struck by, over and over, in the books I read and the people I speak with, is our culture’s emphasis on work, work, work!  Workaholism with its attendant stress, long hours, and burn-out is often bragged about, as if it were a badge of honor!

A recipe for creativity AND fun:

Looking at the most brilliant minds (both recent and past) in science, the arts, literature, sports and even politics and the military—those who were most successful balanced their lives with play.  Often 4 hours of intense focus was IT for the day!  Then rest, baths, and lots of physical activity.

For college and university students, that may seem like an impossibility.  But I lovingly challenge you: go ahead and take that hour nap, and that hour of brisk walking or working out at the gym and see if the rest of your day is not far more fruitful.  Because of scheduled classes, labs, lessons and practices you may not be able to shrink your working day to 4 hours, but I would wager it could shrink a lot with proper balance.  Try it!!