Investing in Myself: A Journey to Finding Balance

• Finding balance can seem impossible for women who are often juggling multiple roles and responsibilities. 
• Eugenia Lazaris shares her experience juggling career, family, and personal fulfillment. 
• Readers are taken through her transformation from realizing burnout to the pivotal moment of self-reflection. 
• By reshaping her career, she not only found a new path but also rediscovered herself.
• Self-investment is a powerful tool for achieving a sense of balance and fulfillment.

The Pressure of Expectations

Being a woman isn’t easy. We are expected to take on multiple roles throughout the course of our lives, often at the same time, and juggling so many responsibilities can be crushing. We are expected to manage households, families, careers, and our own personal lives without complaining. If we do have the audacity to complain, it can be perceived as weakness, laziness, or failure.

The pressure is enormous, and I bought into it at an early age. As I inched my way through life, trying to wear every hat and rock each role, I found myself struggling to realize my full potential. I often felt so overwhelmed by the need to meet the expectations of others while trying to be the best possible me that I often wound up being paralyzed by the responsibility. The delicate balance needed to effectively juggle the many hats that women wear day in and day out eluded me. 

As the years went by, I muddled my way through life, doing what I could to get by and doing whatever it took to fulfill my responsibilities. I got used to giving so much of myself to everyone else that I seldom had the energy left to focus on myself. Despite the successes I found in my career, one thing I couldn’t manage to accomplish was finding balance.

The Struggle for Balance

I worked as a social worker, a career that I fell into out of necessity, but not one I pursued out of personal interest. Although it was rewarding and I discovered I was good at it, it drained all my energy. As I became more involved in my career, the stress grew to the point that it became increasingly hard to deliver in other areas of my life. 

I slowly began putting my dreams aside, followed by my personal interests in order to have enough time and energy to fulfill my responsibilities at work and at home. Self-care became an afterthought, something I didn’t have much time for. 

Don’t get me wrong— there is nothing wrong with a career in social services, but for someone like me who has a tendency to give everything I have and neglect myself in the process, it has the potential to lead to burnout.

Recognizing Burnout

Life went on this way for years at a breakneck pace and, before I knew it, more of it had passed me by than I was comfortable with. I no longer recognized myself. My dreams had long since gone by the wayside and the things that once made me happy were no longer interests I actively pursued. As a result, I was unhappy, unfulfilled, and unable to give the best of myself in any area of my life. To make matters worse, burnout had long since become a reality and I had reached a point where I didn’t want to fix it. I simply wanted to walk away. At that point, my chosen career was no longer rewarding, and I was no longer able to be effective in helping others. I was in trouble.

It was time for a change.

The Turning Point

I am lucky to have a support system of people who love and care about me, something that I wish every woman had access to. One of my biggest supporters is my older brother, who has always been my rock. As time went on and I grew more and more dissatisfied, he was my shoulder to cry on. 

Thankfully, my brother isn’t afraid to give some tough love. One day he told me he couldn’t listen to my crying anymore. “No one is going to fix your life for you,” he said. “Figure out what will make you happy and find a way to make it happen.” 

His words hit home. Not only was it time for a change, but I was the only one who could be the catalyst of that change. If I was going to bring balance back into my life, I was going to have to figure out the necessary path to make that happen and put in the work to make it a reality.

I evaluated the different hats I wore. Certain roles were inherently a part of my life that I would never change, but my career, which I pinpointed as the main source of my burnout, could be changed. But it would be hard. Doable, but hard. I set to work determining what I would rather do with my life and what it would take to make it a reality. 

I soon had a plan, one that would take several years to implement. While this wasn’t a ‘quick fix’ to my situation, it still had a wonderful effect on my well-being. I made the commitment to invest in myself for me, for my future, and so I could be the best me no matter which hat I wore. 

Knowing that I had a plan in place gave me a sense of peace I hadn’t felt in a long time, and taking the steps to implement that plan gave me something to be excited about again. 

I discovered a sense of empowerment at learning new things and developing new skills. With each stage in my plan completed, the accomplishment of getting one step closer to my goal made me feel more and more at peace. I had a goal to work toward, one that was slowly letting me take my life back and create that sense of balance that had long been missing from it.

Overcoming Obstacles

I slowly began laying the groundwork, taking classes in my free time and using the money I had saved to educate myself and build a business of my own as a freelance writer and editor. Although I was working more hours than ever before (running a freelance business is no joke) and sleeping very little, this investment in myself was paying off tenfold. 

Not only was I learning new skills, I was working toward a goal and developing a business. My personal interests slowly returned, I began enjoying quality time with my family once again and started making self-care a priority again. At work, I enjoyed a clearer focus and learned to set better boundaries. My life began to feel less disjointed and more complete.

At home, my family relationships improved, my ability to manage tasks improved, and I began spending time with friends and enjoying my hobbies once again, although it might be more fitting to say that I re-learned to enjoy my hobbies.

When I transitioned from full-time employee to a fully self-employed businesswoman, I was admittedly terrified, but relished in seeing all my hard work come to fruition. 

Slowly I began to heal from my burnout and in time I found an inner peace that helped keep me grounded. My investment in myself had not only given me the necessary tools to change my career and embark on a journey of self-employment, but it also gave me a sense of fulfillment that allowed me to balance my energy throughout all areas of my life.

Embracing Change

Today I manage my own schedule, working the hours I want to and calling my own shots. My work allows me to be flexible so I can manage family needs, handle personal issues, and ensure I take time for myself. I still have stress in my life, and I still experience plenty of days when certain responsibilities require more attention than others, but thanks to an inner peace that was out of my reach for far too long, I no longer feel overwhelmed by these moments.

Life, by nature, is chaotic and we can never predict what will pop up to throw things off balance. For this reason, we are always in a state of flux and everything we can do to maintain a status quo, that sense of balance that makes us feel we are living our best life possible, is well worth it. 

I learned some valuable lessons from investing in myself. For one, I am capable of doing what it takes to create happiness and balance in my life. I also know that I can create change, and I have the power to use that change to achieve the life I want for myself. And, above all, I deserve that life for myself. Without it, I would never be able to achieve the balance I need to wear all the different hats I wear in this life as a woman without sinking under their weight.

The journey of self-discovery and growth I have undertaken can offer hope to people struggling with the overwhelming demands of modern life. By restoring balance to my life and reigniting my zest for living, I was able to reignite my zest for living. My story illustrates that we possess the power to sculpt our destinies and forge the life we desire. It is imperative to embrace change and prioritize self-care if we are to achieve harmony and fulfillment.