Harmony in Hustle: A Working Woman’s Guide to Work-Life “Juggle”
By Nicole Yong.Y.Y
Have you experienced the joy of harmony in your life?
I still remember watching “The Devil Wears Prada” years ago. I recalled I used to resonate deeply with Andrea’s (the protagonist) struggles and triumphs upon watching it. She portrayed the struggles of her personal life, pursuing lifelong ambitions, and the harsh reality of a toxic workplace.
Work-life balance is challenging for everyone, especially for women, who often navigate additional societal expectations and responsibilities in their role as a daughter, a wife and a mother.
Lessons from the Gita
I like to read Bhagavad Gita, the ancient Indian scripture derived from the epic poem, The Mahabharata. This composition as compiled by the great sage Vyasadeva, is an important yogic text that guide us on how to transform ourselves to live a harmonious life in this world full with changes, challenges and obstacles.
In Bhagavad Gita, there are dialogues between Prince Arjuna, the warrior prince who represents you and me, and Sri Krishna, who stands for the Lord within.
In the second chapter, Arjuna asks,
“Tell me, Krishna, of those who are established in wisdom. How do they talk? How do they act at home and work, among friends, among enemies? When facing challenges, frustration, disappointment, disloyalty, how do they behave?”
To that, Sri Krishna replies:
“They are established in wisdom who have removed every trace of selfish motivation from the mind. Alike in victory and defeat, success and failure, they have mastered the art of living and attained life’s highest goal. One whose mind remains undisturbed amidst misery, who does not crave for pleasure, and who is free from attachment, fear, and anger, is called a sage of steady wisdom.”
Achieving Harmony in the Hustle
As a raja yogi, I realised that the sooner we rationalise the idea of work-life balance, the more peaceful and harmonious our life becomes. I call this journey “achieving harmony in the hustle”.
Being in the state of “juggling” is more forgiving. It embraces chaos and imperfections and allows us to navigate through all of them with mindfulness and peacefulness, or even joyfulness.
Taking my seat as a yogini for a decade, I realised that there is no promise of a perfect happy ever after on this path. Life is filled with both triumphs and failures, and sometimes glorious failures which is full of pain and beauty, unbearable suffering, ordinariness, challenges and grace. Sometimes glorious failures are more interesting than unambitious successes in career. Thus, I follow this mantra “Follow our own dharma. Just drop our extreme tendencies and everything will be in harmony.”
Realisation and Mindfulness - An Effective Antidote to Chaos
A woman who is always too focused in achieving her profession may find it is easy to be influenced by chaos and subsequently lose sight of the present moment.
By cultivating a mindful approach to both work and life, we will become more attuned to our “available energy”, inner pace and rhythms at present moment. Mindfulness practice enables us to navigate day to day challenges with grace and resilience, helps us to realise of how we should connect with people around us, and leads us to a more effective and harmony communication in the office and at home.
Here are some mindfulness practices I recommend:
- Mindful Breathing: Set aside around 10 minutes each day to sit quietly and witness your breathing pattern or chanting a mantra. Simply observe the thoughts that come and go without judging or getting caught up in them.
- Mindful Walking: Take a break and go for a walk outdoors at least 15 to 20 minutes each day. Pay attention to every step you take, the sensation of your feet touching the ground, and the sights and sounds around you. Again, simply observe without judging or getting caught up in them.
- Abdominal Breathing: Slowly and deeply inhale through your nose, allowing your belly to expand, and exhale slowly through your nose, allowing your whole body to relax. Practice it for 21 rounds when you feel you need to recharge yourself.
How To Overcome "Firefighting"?
If you do not know how to manage your daily tasks with awareness, you will always feel that you were pounded by all the never-ending urgent tasks which demand your full focus and energy. At the end, you might feel drained off and everything doesn’t seem to go smoothly and harmoniously as you expected. Now, how do we overcome firefighting?
Have you heard that the stiffest tall tree is more likely to fall down during a thunderstorm? Forcing ourselves to go through strict routines everyday are only good at times. However, in the long run, this routine can take away our feeling of harmony and peacefulness. Thus, we ought to learn the art of letting go ego and be flexible. We may organise our priorities – some days we prioritise work, and other days where our family will take precedence over everything else.
It’s important to remember and learn to take good care of ourselves. We should exercise regularly, meditate and eat healthy food to nourish ourselves with good energy. Instead of trying to check all the boxes in the to-do list, get to that one most important thing for the day and week and do it well. When we take care of ourselves, we will be more equipped to extend our assistance to others.
Setting Boundaries
With the advancement of technology, boundaries have gradually become blurred for most working people. By setting boundaries between work and personal life, we can cultivate a healthier lifestyle, and enhance our relationships with our family at the same time.
To achieve this, we can establish a clear work arrangement by setting designated work hours. Ensure your working team, clients, and stakeholders know your work and personal rest hours. Then, we may incorporate breaks into our daily schedule to rest and recharge. Let’s say, attending gentle yoga, meditation class, go for a gentle exercise as regular breaks helps prevent burnout while boosting our immune system too.
Last but not least, we can create a technology-free zone in our dining area at home and enjoy the food with our family without any distractions.
We Deserve to Celebrate Progress
I believe that even a small step forward is able to bring us closer to the harmonious integration of work and life that we seek. Thus, let’s not force ourselves to achieve perfection. We celebrate our own progress, no matter how small it may seem. It’s alright to make small mistakes. We learn to let go of our ego, and seek supports from family, colleagues, and mentors who can offer encouragement, guidance, and perspective.
Work-Life Balance
When you are in a harmonious state, you feel happiness. And it will reflect in your work and your interactions with others as you radiate with joy and contentment!
We know in order to achieve balance and harmony in the hustling working world is an ongoing journey with a lot of challenges. It requires mindfulness on how to balance between ambition and selfcare, determination and letting go, and perseverance and flexibility. However, we have to remember that the rewards of juggling through the professional and personal life are immeasurable.
Let’s continue striving for balance and harmony, appreciating the challenges as opportunities for growth and fulfilment.