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"What is a Balanced Woman?" I've asked myself over and over again. I have searched for answers. I have asked others. I have surfed the web. But the answers I've come up with have more to do with what a Balanced Woman is not. Then it occurred to me that perhaps through exploring what it is not we can define, determine and conclude exactly what a balanced woman is.

A balanced woman is NOT superwoman! Superwoman is a mythical cartoon figure who was NEVER based upon an actual female. If she had been real she'd be popular and famous and rich by now! She wouldn't still be just some Saturday morning cartoon! A balanced woman is NOT someone who can do it all. There are only 24 hours in each day, 16 if you allow yourself some sleep. Sixteen hours just aren't enough to tend to yourself, your partner, your children, your work, your home and your friends! A balanced woman understands this. She does NOT consider herself a failure for her inability to do it all, all the time. She understands that she has limits. She accepts those limits and she does what she can with the time and energy she has.

A balanced woman is NOT perfect nor does she expect perfection from herself. She is human and like all human beings she has mood swings, energy shifts and days when she just might not feel like being productive at all. She is not someone who expects to be "done" one day, done with the housework, done with the homework, done with the cooking, done with the bill paying, done with the shopping, etc. etc. She understands that she will NEVER be "done" and therefore, she doesn't try. A balanced woman is NOT someone who neglects her own needs. She understands that if her needs are not met there will be little left of her to give to others.

A Balanced Woman does understand priorities and as such she understands that priorities can and do change daily. Therefore, she is always adjusting her schedule and her plans to accommodate her priorities of the day. She does understand time management and so she has learned not to over commit herself. She has worked at saying "no" and she has let go of the guilt associated with that two-letter word.

A balanced woman is always looking for better and faster ways to accomplish some of the less important yet equally demanding responsibilities in her life.

A balanced woman defines what it is she really wants and directs her resources accordingly. A balanced woman questions what it is she wants to be remembered for at the end of her life and she lives each day consistent with the answers she has found. Ultimately, a balanced woman understands that a life of quality is much more important and far more rewarding than a life of quantity. She knows that it is her relationships with people that count more than a clean house, more than the perfect meal, more than spotless laundry, and more than an endless supply of money in the bank.

Being a balanced woman is an ongoing process. It is NOT a destination. It involves constantly reminding yourself about what it is that's important to you. And it involves truly BELIEVING that you are okay when you can't do it all and when you are less than perfect.

Our Mothers, Our SelvesTelecommuting

Jacqueline McLaughlin Hale is a CPA and the editor of Between Friends: Living Life Your Way (http://www.betweenfriends.org) Between Friends is a website dedicated to helping women balance their responsibilities so that they can make more time for themselves. It does this by providing tips, tricks and tools for household hints, parenting, money matters and self-improvement.