Balance
Quality over quantity. Ever since I came across that phrase in the “University of California [UC] Counselor Conference” slides about maximizing the Activities and Awards section of the UC undergraduate application, it has been at the forefront of my mind and had me thinking extensively about balance.
It seems like our society shifted from a quality over quantity to a quantity over quality approach overnight, equating value with how busy one is, especially outside of school and work, not with how much balance one has in their life. I think we, society as a whole, tend to fill every waking minute of our “free” time with activities, most of which don’t fill us with joy and/or won’t provide us with long-term benefits—we are just doing them because we feel like we should be doing them.
Since the end of last year, when I moved from Silicon Valley to the North Bay Area and was provided with an opportunity to live a more balanced lifestyle, I have been reflecting extensively on schedules and balance, and as part of this ongoing reflection, I have been thinking a lot about how I want to spend my “new” life once my son, who turns 18 this month, embarks on the college adventure that is awaiting him this fall.
During this ongoing reflection, I have realized that despite the fact that my parenting responsibilities have been decreasing in recent years, my free time surprisingly has not been increasing; I think in large part because I am an entrepreneur who is always innovating, and I tend to quickly fill my free time with tasks on my never-ending to-do list.
Eager to continue to innovate but also live a life infused with balance, for the last few months, I have been focusing on normalizing my work hours for the first time since I founded my business over ten years ago: I have been starting and ending my workdays at consistent and sustainable times, 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. respectively, and I have been taking a 90-minute lunch break at the same time every day. Doing so has allowed me to regularly take yoga classes, classes that fill me with joy and provide me with long-term benefits, before and after work on Tuesdays and Thursdays and during my lunch breaks on Mondays and Wednesdays. This simple yet seemingly challenging to implement schedule change has provided me with an opportunity to practice slowing down—both in and outside of the yoga classes—and to connect with those in my community in a positive and meaningful way.
Although I have carved out enough time in my schedule to take yoga classes before and after work and during lunchtime almost every workday, I have been careful to not fill every waking minute of my free time with activities—instead, I have been taking a quality over quantity approach because I value not busyness but balance for its rarity and power to positively transform lives.
~ Christina Caputo
Founder & Owner of ★ W O R D S