We need balance to live a happy and healthy life. Everything in this world comes down to finding the proper balance. Whatever area of your life you are considering, everything works better and goes more smoothly when you’ve got a balance.

Achieving this balance may be challenging, but here are five ways to introduce more balance into your life and get things going in the right direction.

1) Prioritize

We all have busy lives and long to-do lists. The only way we’ll ever get everything done and find balance in our lives is by prioritizing what needs to be done when and scheduling our days. Prioritizing and scheduling can be an excellent practice for introducing more of a sense of balance to your life.

The tricky part of this is deciding just what is essential. In some cases, your work may take priority, but in others, family or friends may take precedence over your work on your to-do list. Only you can decide what’s important and what you should prioritize in your schedule and when.

2) Set Goals

Setting both long-term and short-term goals can be incredibly helpful in achieving a balance in your life. Goals help you focus on what you want and what’s most important. This way, you avoid straying from your path. The short-term goals allow you to track your progress as you work to achieve your long-term goals and help you stay on track.

3) Be specific in your schedule and review it

Suppose one of your goals was to spend more time watching cooking shows. Saying, “I will watch The Barefoot Contessa and Iron Chef every Tuesday and Thursday evening at 7,” is more specific than if you say, “watch cooking shows at least twice a week.” By being more specific in this way, you are more likely to follow through. Don’t set yourself up for failure.

Once you’ve developed your schedule and are sure you’re specific in the goals you want to achieve and the steps necessary to get there, you should review your schedule. This is an essential step allowing you to reflect on your goals and priorities to ensure everything is as you need it.

4) Find an accountability buddy

An accountability buddy is a person who holds you accountable for the goals you’ve made, the priorities you’ve set, and the things you’ve said you’ve wanted to accomplish. It’s easier to find balance and stick to your goals and schedule when you have a buddy to be accountable to who is also accountable to you.

Your relationship with your accountability buddy should be interactive and mutual. If you’re not pulling your weight or carrying more than your load, you could be hurting yourself more than you’re helping.

5) Keep the process in mind

Life isn’t just about what you achieve and what you get. It’s also about the journey and the process. To achieve a proper balance, you must remember that it’s more the process than the potential achievement.

For example, you can make your goal to win a Nobel prize in literature, or your goal could be to receive payment for writing as your career. The second option is a more achievable goal focusing on the process and journey more than the achievement or prize at the end.

Everyone needs balance to live a happy and healthy life. Finding the proper balance in your life can be difficult, but it’s not impossible, and it’s well worth the effort. Hopefully, this article points you toward a healthy balance in your life.