Photo by onlinesurveys
As mentioned in a previous post, prior to launching :simple:balance:, we conducted an on-line survey to learn more about what potential readers of this blog may be interested in. We asked some basic questions about demographics (gender, age, etc.) and what roles people identify with. We also asked about what challenges people have faced when trying to balance their multiple roles, as well as what benefits they find from their involvement in them. We attempted to take a brief peek into people's lives to see what they do to find balance, who they rely on for support, and whether or not their current life situation meets the expectations they had. The results are really interesting and insightful! We discovered that it’s a complicated world out there for all of us, and there are various routes and different ideas being applied to make it more simple. We love what we learned and want to share it with you!
We plan to take a couple of posts to summarize the results (you respondents had a lot of great things to say!), so this is just the beginning. We thought that you might like to learn more about the survey results and about how the feedback gathered will shape the development of this blog. We realize that the day-in and day-out struggles of someone’s life cannot be captured in a few answers to survey questions. So our plan is to expand on these ideas, learn more about what people had to say, and continue to gather feedback from you, the readers of :simple:balance:. So, check out what we’ve learned so far, and add anything else you think is important. We welcome your comments and discussion!
Who were the respondents and what did they say?
Most of the survey respondents were women with an average age of 35 years. Most were married with children, and all identified with multiple roles. “Friend” was the most identified with role, followed closely by employee, spouse, and parent. Other roles included sibling, child, extracurricular activity participant, partner, extracurricular activity leader, manager/supervisor, and grandparent. It was obvious that folks are tapped into a lot of different activities, and by identifying with multiple roles, it is evident that they are all important.
We plan to take a couple of posts to summarize the results (you respondents had a lot of great things to say!), so this is just the beginning. We thought that you might like to learn more about the survey results and about how the feedback gathered will shape the development of this blog. We realize that the day-in and day-out struggles of someone’s life cannot be captured in a few answers to survey questions. So our plan is to expand on these ideas, learn more about what people had to say, and continue to gather feedback from you, the readers of :simple:balance:. So, check out what we’ve learned so far, and add anything else you think is important. We welcome your comments and discussion!
Who were the respondents and what did they say?
Most of the survey respondents were women with an average age of 35 years. Most were married with children, and all identified with multiple roles. “Friend” was the most identified with role, followed closely by employee, spouse, and parent. Other roles included sibling, child, extracurricular activity participant, partner, extracurricular activity leader, manager/supervisor, and grandparent. It was obvious that folks are tapped into a lot of different activities, and by identifying with multiple roles, it is evident that they are all important.
Most people indicated that the biggest challenge to balancing life roles is related to time, or rather, lack thereof. No surprise, right? How many of us have wished for just a few more hours in the day to get everything on our to-do lists done? What remains a miracle, though, is how we prioritize our roles, the responsibilities they entail, and find time to accomplish any of them. The lack of time leads to depleted energy and feelings of guilt – “I never feel like I’m giving anything 100%” was a common sentiment for many respondents. Sound familiar?
What really stood out in the survey, though, was not the struggles that folks identified. Rather, despite the challenges, people indicated that having multiple life roles is enriching. A variety of daily experiences, relationships with people involved in each role, and being fulfilled on many levels (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual) were some of the benefits noted. “I may not be able to do it all, but I enjoy doing all I can” sums up what many people said.
So what does all of this mean?
We learned that trying to give all, be all, and do all just is not possible. But that doesn’t mean that we should neglect parts of ourselves or our lives just because it is difficult. Finding our niches in the different roles we identify with is well worth the challenge; we thrive in this juggle because of the fulfillment we get from those different roles. If I decided that having friends took too much time, and rather spent my energies on work and family only, I would be missing a huge part of what satisfies me and makes me who I am. And that would probably have a negative impact on my job and my family role.
So, if we were to use one phrase to summarize this first phase of the survey results, it would be this: It is tough. But because it is tough, and because people still engage in all the roles they do, it must be worth it. There must be something reinforcing in all that hard work, or else people wouldn’t do it. Our plan is to take this information, continue to solicit more through the :simple:balance: community, and shape it into simple recommendations that work. So, continue to join us on this journey of finding ways to make the juggle more simple. Because the more simple we can be in our approach to struggles, the more balance we will find… and that will allow us to thrive in all of our life roles.
More to come...
What really stood out in the survey, though, was not the struggles that folks identified. Rather, despite the challenges, people indicated that having multiple life roles is enriching. A variety of daily experiences, relationships with people involved in each role, and being fulfilled on many levels (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual) were some of the benefits noted. “I may not be able to do it all, but I enjoy doing all I can” sums up what many people said.
So what does all of this mean?
We learned that trying to give all, be all, and do all just is not possible. But that doesn’t mean that we should neglect parts of ourselves or our lives just because it is difficult. Finding our niches in the different roles we identify with is well worth the challenge; we thrive in this juggle because of the fulfillment we get from those different roles. If I decided that having friends took too much time, and rather spent my energies on work and family only, I would be missing a huge part of what satisfies me and makes me who I am. And that would probably have a negative impact on my job and my family role.
So, if we were to use one phrase to summarize this first phase of the survey results, it would be this: It is tough. But because it is tough, and because people still engage in all the roles they do, it must be worth it. There must be something reinforcing in all that hard work, or else people wouldn’t do it. Our plan is to take this information, continue to solicit more through the :simple:balance: community, and shape it into simple recommendations that work. So, continue to join us on this journey of finding ways to make the juggle more simple. Because the more simple we can be in our approach to struggles, the more balance we will find… and that will allow us to thrive in all of our life roles.
More to come...
Stay tuned for more results from the survey and ideas gleaned from it. In the meantime, take a few minutes to answer these questions and reflect on them in your own life: (1) What do you find to be the biggest struggle to balancing your various roles?; and (2) On the flip side, what is the most rewarding?
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