The Lost Dream: Tips on Creating Personal Life Work Balance

It can be difficult for some people to create a balance between their personal life and work life. To help understand why some people have challenges with creating personal life work balance and for tips on creating personal life work balance, I have interviewed psychotherapist Dianne Greyerbiehl, Ph.D.

Tell me a little bit about yourself.
"I am a licensed professional counselor and a certified master life and leadership coach. I've been doing a combined coaching-counseling approach for about 25 years. My passion is helping others to flourish in their life and work by finding meaning, purpose and balance from the inside out. I do that by coaching others in how to use a positive mindset rather than a survival attitude in what they do. The result is optimal thinking, better relationships, increased happiness, and a sense of flourishing and better health. To better accomplish this, my educational background helps me to provide expertise across many areas of life and work with three master's degrees in communication, business and counseling, as well as a doctorate (Ph.D.) in cognitive neuroscience (brain science)."

Why do some people have challenges with creating personal life work balance?
"There are at least three reasons. First, many people are reacting to their life from a survival mindset. They are fearful of losing their job, making the boss unhappy, someone stealing their ideas or getting promoted over them. Therefore, they are constantly waiting for something bad to happen to which they have to react.

Second, others feel driven to please everyone else before they please themselves and in fact think this is their responsibility. So they spend their life reacting to what other people want or what they think other people expect them to do or be. The consequence is there is never any time to do what they want and need and they burn out.

Finally, a third group is driven to succeed at all costs in order to prove they are worthy. They want others to respect them and they want to gain power to make that happen. Consequently, success and achievement is what they are married to in their life.

For all three types of people, the power of decision-making is with the other persons in their lives -- what they want, when they want it and what they are likely to do which will impact them. The final outcome is that the desire for a balanced life becomes a dream that seems impossible to achieve."

What are some tips to create a personal life work balance ?
"It is necessary to do two things: (1) Bring decision-making power within the self, rather than allowing it to reside in what others want or expect. (2) The predominant mindset needs to change from one of survival, fear and being unworthy to one of positivity and hope.

If you learn how to do the second thing the first requirement of taking your power back will fall into place naturally. Both positive psychology and brain science have come up with practical easy-to-do methods to create a positive mindset over time. The results include increased happiness, health, flourishing, meaning, and thinking as well as optimal performance and better relationships. Lots of bang for your buck!"

What type of professional help is available for someone that is having a difficult time creating a personal life work balance?
"The ideal professional would be one who is a certified professional coach who is also trained in how to bring about deep but permanent change in an easy way. Not all coaches are trained to do this, nor are counselors. Traditional counselors are trained to focus on problems and how to fix them but not how to build wellness and positivity into other's lives. Coaches are trained to build wellness and positive attitude in others, but often don't know how to transform internal obstacles within us that get in the way of moving forward in a positive way, e.g. negative habits and ways of thinking. Consequently, you need a professional life coach who also has some training in counseling and facilitating deep personal change."

Thank you Dr. Greyerbiehl for doing the interview on creating personal life work balance. For more information on Dr. Greyerbiehl or her work you can check out her website at www.lifecoachinginstitute.net .

Recommended Readings:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6166384/are_you_a_workaholic.html?cat=5">Are You a Workaholic?

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5961860/how_to_create_balance_between_your.html?cat=5">How to Create Balance Between Your Work & Personal Life

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5594512/how_to_avoid_work_burn_out.html?cat=5">How to Avoid Work Burn Out