A few years ago, I read a book where the author used the analogy of a top spinning. If it was balanced, it could spin incredibly fast and stay centered. If the top was the smallest bit off balance it started to wobble and lose momentum.

I’ve felt off-balance many times in the past year. I’ve experienced lots of good things this year, but challenging financial difficulties and the decision and actuality of closing my business, Profits in Progress. Through this year, I’ve been more honest and have taken steps to be kinder with myself. (Does everyone say meaner things to themselves than they would to others? Or is it just me?)

Through this year, I’ve started to trust my inner sense of knowing to a greater degree. There is a phrase, “don’t push the river.” I got too tired to keep pushing the river and fighting upstream toward a goal that I wasn’t reaching. Amazingly, this easier flow of life is so much more simple and enjoyable. It is such a blessing to realize that the job of “Manager of the Universe” really is not mine to perform.

Some of the practices that help me with balance… that I’ve practiced often this year:

• Getting it out of my head. I’ve had private journals for 15+ years. Truly “writing my heart out” is still reserved for notebooks only I will read, but I’m finding that others enjoy my ramblings with my entry into the world of blogging.

• Spending time outdoors always clears my head, eyes and heart. I love to walk at the park or in the woods…and the beach whenever I have the opportunity. That time outside helps me appreciate the beautiful world around me and often sparks ideas.

• Laughing with friends. This has a magical effect of letting me feel the hand of God on my life. I’m so grateful to all the people who laugh with me and share their quirky perspective of life.

• Massage… giving or getting. I took a massage certification course in 2002 and find that when I focus while giving a massage, it becomes a moving meditation. And being on the receiving end helps me appreciate what a wonder this body is and how easily it can remember what relaxation should feel like when I just let go and allow it.

• Prayer, affirmations and meditation. I’ve discovered the power of using a mala this year and I’m amazed how centering this “reminding” tool can be for me. I’ve used my mala with prayers, one bead per person, and with affirmations, repeating each affirmation a bead at time, through a section or the entire 108 beads.

• I created a Prayer Book a few months ago. It contains prayers, poems, songs and quotes that comfort and inspire me. I sometimes carry it with me and re-read the entries and add new ones

My birthday is near the end of August and I often make commitments on that day. (Last year I got married on my birthday!) I hope to remember more often what balance feels like during my next trip around the sun. I will encourage my “take control self” to “lighten up!” When life gets a little wobbly, I’ll do a few simple things to bring myself back into center. And sometimes, falling down is the best way to start over.