Thank you for joining me for the very first episode of Keeping Balance at Hand. Sharing my journey and lessons learnt in living a balanced life is truly a dream come true, and I look forward to supporting you to live your best, most balanced life. 

Today, I’m providing you with an insight into the Balance at Hand blueprint, which is based on the three P’s I live by: 

1. Purpose

2. Productivity

3. Preparedness

I believe that to achieve balance at hand, you need all three areas to be working in harmony. And once you get there, that’s where you find the sweet spot to truly thrive. 

While determining your own unique purpose, productivity and preparedness sounds complex, it really is a great reference to keep coming back to if you get stuck on where to focus next. So let's investigate the fundamentals of the three P’s together and begin the journey to creating your own special balance at hand. 

Connect with Me: 

Website: www.balanceathand.com 

Instagram:  @balance_at_hand

Hello, and thank you so

much for joining me for

EPISODE 1 of the Keeping

Balance at Hand podcast.

Bringing this to you is a

dream come true, and I am

so excited to share with

you the lessons I have

learned to support every

person that wants to live

their best balanced life.

Today, I'll be providing

you an insight into the

balance at hand blueprint.

The creation of Balance

at Hand was fuelled by

my own personal journey,

and I know firsthand

that since I discovered

my purpose, combined it

with the fundamentals of

productivity and preparedness,

I have become unstoppable.

At the time, I never realised

that my qualifications in

chemical engineering were the

most amplified training and

organisation one could have,

and this, combined with my

design background, has set

me apart in understanding the

science, logic and art that

will enable you to create your

own special balance at hand.

My goal now is to share

this information with

you so you can thrive and

create your own balance.

The blueprint is

based on the three P's

purpose, productivity,

and preparedness.

You need all of these areas

to be working in harmony

to achieve balance at hand.

But when you achieve

that, wow, you've hit the

sweet spot in your life

where you really thrive.

Before we get stuck into

the detail of the three P's.

I'd like to provide a

really oversimplified

explanation of what the

three P's are using an

analogy of a journey purpose.

Having your purpose sets

your destination and the

direction you're taking.

Productivity determines

the vehicle you'll use to

get there and preparedness

identifies what you need

to pack and have ready

for you for your journey.

Many people have one or two

strengths in these areas, but

having all three aligned is

where the magic really is.

For example, if you've

selected your vehicle and

packed, but you don't know

where you're going, you

aren't going to get far.

Or if you have a destination

and a vehicle, but you

haven't packed, you're also

not going to get far either.

But when you have all

three worked out, well,

adventure really waits.

So while determining your own

unique purpose, productivity

and preparedness is a lot

more complex than a journey.

It is a great reference

to keep coming back to

if you are stuck about

where to focus next.

So let's investigate

the details together,

starting with purpose.

Finding my purpose was

my biggest challenge.

Personally, I found myself

increasingly unhappy

as I grappled with the

question of why am I here?

Do I like the job I'm doing?

Is this all there is?

And what is the

meaning of my life?

Big, big, scary questions.

And I didn't know what

I was looking for.

I just knew there were heaps

of things I wanted to do,

but I didn't think they were

realistic or appropriate.

And none of them seemed

to be my purpose either.

I found my purpose in a

completely unexpected way

for someone as serious

and methodical as me,

which I'll share with you

in a future episode that

I'm going to dedicate

entirely to that person.

If you have your

purpose already, that

is absolutely brilliant.

For those of you that are

still looking or trying to

define it better, consider

what is the legacy you

wish to give this planet

and those around you.

I have found a great number

of people whose purpose

is kindness, and they

embody that in everything

they undertake every day.

Everyone's purpose varies

greatly, but consistently

I see people with a defined

legacy that delivers

positive influence to

either themselves, their

family, their friends,

or the broader community.

Your purpose is a highly

personal thing that you

can continue to refine

throughout your life.

your purpose should be

your very own Special North

Star that allows you to

assess yourself and your

personal development against.

Under purpose Complementing

your desired legacy is

your top 10 life goals.

Consider this your bucket

list of things you'd like to

achieve, do or experience.

You can have more or less,

but 10 seems to be a pretty

good number that works.

For some people, this can

be collecting rare items,

climbing Mount Everest,

amassing wealth or assets,

or having an annual family

picnic in a special location.

The options are endless and

reflect you and your desires.

To round things out, In the

area of purpose, you should

also have a five year plan

of how you're working towards

achieving these goals and

ultimately your legacy.

There is no incorrect way

to define your purpose.

And the great thing is that

as you go and progress,

you can change your mind.

The critical part is

setting the direction so

you are consciously making

decisions for your future.

Again, there are so many ways

this can be tackled, which

this podcast will be exploring

in depth with guidance from

experts in each area as we

progress through the series.

Next up is productivity.

What are the daily activities

you are doing that are

taking you towards or

away from your life goals?

Let's look at organization,

which for those who know me,

organization is a passion of

mine and one of my strengths.

This is a really important

thing I want to share with

you about organization.

Organization doesn't mean

that you have a sparkling

house and a pantry that

could be photographed

for home beautiful.

Organization means less chaos,

and this is something I really

want everyone to appreciate.

Organization means less chaos.

Less chaos means a calm space

which translates to calmer,

happier, healthy people.

You are not unorganized for

leaving chores uncompleted.

Or for having a linen

cupboard that demonstrates

that you are a Tetris

champion, unless they are

creating chaos in your life.

Organization means you get to

work or appointments on time.

If you have kids, they are

where they need to be at

the right time and place,

and you have what you

need for your day or week.

As organized as I am, I do

not like to have a schedule,

so I don't have them, but I

have a general plan of attack

for each day, and I know

where my obligations are.

If your morning has become

a routine of chaos that

consistently threatens your

ability to confidently meet

your personal obligations,

such as getting to work

on time, then I suggest

this would be a great

area for you to focus.

So quick recap, the first

part of productivity is

to have a plan for each

day in the overall week.

But I don't like to just

get through the day.

I like to win the day.

Each day you should set

yourself three things

you need to achieve to

make your day successful.

For me, I have gone one

step further, and I have

three personal things to

achieve, and three work

things to achieve each day.

At the end of each

day, I note my three

things for the next day.

And have them visible on my

desk, so that I am ready to

achieve as soon as I arrive.

And the same

process personally.

At the end of each day,

reflect on your day.

What went well, what didn't

go well, and what are

the things you would like

to achieve the next day.

Achieving tasks each day,

no matter how small, makes

you a winner each day.

And you can surprise

yourself with how much

you start to achieve.

The third area of productivity

is short term planning.

I plan in eight week chunks,

and this is something I

learned from the wonderful

Shana Blaze, and it has

been a game changer for me.

Eight weeks isn't too far

away that you'll put things in

the I'll do it later basket,

because eight weeks is going

to be here before you know it.

But it's long enough to set

bigger actions in motion to

progress towards achieving

your five year goals.

Reviewing your eight weeks,

including what you need

to achieve each week, And

then each day to achieve

your desired outcome.

Overall, the simple process

is plan in eight week

chunks, then break into

weekly progress to achieve

your eight week plan.

And then each week break

that into daily goals.

This will take a bit

of time to get used to.

However, once you've got

it in practice, it becomes

easier, faster, and something

you'll become quite proud of.

Finally, and probably my

favorite area, because I

am most comfortable and

most challenged in this

space, is preparedness.

I believe to really thrive,

you must come from a

place of good grounding.

This is your health,

your sanctuary, and

your personal readiness.

Let's start with health.

Our bodies are amazing, and

the more I learn in this area,

the more I am blown away.

Especially for how incredibly

healing our bodies can be if

we support them correctly.

So the basics here

won't be a surprise.

Are you fueling yourself?

Well, moving every

day to stay strong and

developing good habits

that stimulate and protect

your mind, your sanctuary.

This should be a place you

are pleased to enter every

day, be it your home or your

office or your work site, your

sanctuary should be set up

in a way that maximizes you

and unleashes your potential.

Your spaces should serve

you and you should not

be a servant to them.

If each day.

Your home creates a feeling

of overwhelm because your

space is more chaos than calm.

This is a key

focus area for you.

Little changes

make big outcomes.

Finally in the category

of preparedness is

personal readiness.

You can achieve more with

greater confidence if you

have a fallback position.

As being prepared can

prevent you from falling

off your personal course.

or minimize how long

you are impacted from

unexpected situation.

Financial readiness.

I would like for every person

or family to have a minimum of

2, 000 saved for emergencies,

and this is kept separate

from your everyday funds.

This is money to cover

surprises, like an unplanned

dentist visit, which

will always throw you.

Current data is showing

us that it is hard in

the world right now.

And honestly, we don't

need the data to know that.

But over 50 percent of

Australians don't have an

emergency fund in place.

Something is better than

nothing, and putting aside

a very small amount each

week, if that's what you

can do, is the best way to

start creating your buffer.

Next is insurances, and you

never need insurance until you

do, and then it's invaluable.

Is your income protected?

This is something that

you could set up through

your superannuation

fund as an option.

Make sure you have the other

key insurances you need.

Home, contents,

and any vehicles.

Never, ever travel

overseas unless you

have travel insurance.

That's a key rule.

If you can't afford travel

insurance, then you probably

can't afford to travel.

The final critical element

of personal readiness is

having all of your key

documents in one place.

This may be as exciting as

watching the grass grow,

but again, it's super

critical in removing chaos

and situations when you need

those details, particularly

emergency situations.

I have everything in

a folder from my birth

certificate to insurances

to medical information ready

for whenever I need it.

And I've made a folder for

each member of my family.

It is important to note that

this personal information

is extremely valuable,

so invest in a waterproof

and fireproof safe to

store your documents in.

They're available from many

of the large scale stationery

and hardware stores or online,

but provide you peace of mind

in those tricky situations.

So that's a quick overview of

the three foundational areas

of purpose, productivity,

and preparedness that

when working in harmony,

create balance at hand.

Through this podcast, we

will be diving into the

individual topics within

each foundational area.

From today, if you are

ready to start considering

your balance, I've created

a short one page checklist

covering the areas we've

outlined for you to dive

into at your leisure.

This free checklist can be

downloaded from balanceathand.

com.

As you start your journey,

I encourage you to leave

self criticism at the door,

which can be hard, but

from experience I can tell

you that taking a curious

learning mindset puts you in

the best experience to truly

find yourself fascinating.

And we all are.

And that's an exciting

place to be, as from there

you can grow and achieve

things that you did not even

think might be possible.

My journey has enabled me

to become truer to myself.

And really discover myself

and things I didn't even

realize I wanted to do.

Like start a podcast so I

can help others achieve the

same balance I have found.

I have a goal to enable

100, 000 people to find

their balance at hand.

And I certainly hope one

of those people is you.

Thanks so much for

joining me today as we

looked at all the basics.

As the podcast progresses,

we'll be going into

a lot more detail on

each individual topic.

So until next time, live

your best balanced life.