Here I stand in awe of what my father, Chet Holmes, achieved in 55 years of life. I’m in awe of how many lives he touched, how much he produced and created. But being his daughter I ask…

Was it sustainable?

I watched my father bury himself in an early grave using his very own super-powered productivity management system that allowed him to pile more and more on. That same skill to work smarter made him work smarter and smarter and smarter and he forgot there must be space in between before you’re inevitably working harder.

So what is the relationship between balance and productivity? I traveled across the globe to study balance, meditating for hours and hours a day, dedicating my life to service—and what did life do? It sent me back to Los Angeles to watch my father pass and ultimately practice balance in the real world, not just in solitude by myself in an ashram. The days of Buddha under a tree or in a cave for years are just as sustainable as the latter. What impact can you make on your own in solitude anyway?

I know you normally read content to hear the 5 ways to relieve stress, or the 8 tips to live a balanced day, but my experience is that balance is not an equation, it requires conscious awareness. It is not fixed and it must be flexible. Balance flows, it is intuitive, and it is new in every moment. Balance is taking care of your body so you can sustain and perform the work this world needs from you. Balance is doing what fills you from the inside. Balance is trust, and productivity will come easier as you trust YOURSELF, and live in what’s true to you.

A small but mighty take away for you:

An exercise to find trust, when you’re feeling stressed or questioning yourself or wondering if you should take a break or not. TAKE A BREATH.

Stop whatever you’re doing. Inhale through your nose until your ribs are fully expanded, hold that breath for 5 counts, then exhale through your mouth slowly and evenly. If that didn’t make a change in your mind and body, do it again. Repeat until you feel a shift towards clarity.

I’m sure you’ve heard it a million times that you should take deep breaths, so this is obviously not new news. But how many times have you used it in practice?  Have you ever consciously decided to use breathing as a technique to shift from being reactive to proactive? How much of your day is in a state of fight or flight?

There is science that states that when you are in stress or fear you hold your breath. This pushes you into your limbic loop or lizard brain. Not the place you want to work from. The funny thing is that when we were cavemen this was useful. Flight, Fight and Freeze meant life or death. In our world today this is not justified. When you take a deep breath you actually signal to your brain and body that you are not in danger allowing you to think more rationally. It is literally, mind over matter.

If you’re constantly reacting to the world around your stress level will only escalate. So though it may be simple, do not underestimate its impact. Because this is something that costs you no money, requires no prescription…nothing other than yourself and your intention. Don’t make things more difficult than they need to be. Balance starts with breath. Productivity starts with movement, and breath makes movement possible.

The next time you ask yourself, “How do I double sales?” Make sure to add in, “How can I double my life?”

Double your sales, double your life.

Expand your knowledge even more by jumping into this article on turning stress into adrenaline fuel, Put the Full Press on Stress. If you are one of those people who knows all that needs to be done, you really get it, you just can’t seem to do it—then you will want to work with one of our experts to get you on the fast track to the land of productivity. SHOW ME THE WAY.

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By Amanda Holmes, CEO of Chet Holmes International