Most women in business are juggling many things, and despite our best intentions, it can feel quite chaotic at times.

Last year, I set a goal with my business coach: to be content with the chaos. This wasn’t something I was particularly keen on doing. Yes, I wanted to do something to improve the “balancing act”, but navel gazing is not generally my thing. Anyone who knows me well would agree that I'm a very pragmatic, task oriented, "get on with it/over it" kind of person.

But despite my misgivings, we started out by observing what felt chaotic. Amazingly, the very act of writing down those things began a process of feeling okay about the chaos. I began to pinpoint areas that really triggered those feelings of chaos and working out "is it me or my environment?". I began to approach “chaos” with a bit more clarity and sanity!

It was interesting that a really simple exercise resulted in small but significant changes in my perception and therefore outlook.

And often it is small changes that can make all the difference: making time for a 15 minute walk during the day; getting to bed 30 minutes earlier; getting up before the kids so you’re ready for their morning routine; taking time for small celebrations (eg clearing your inbox!).

In the words of Frank A. Clark: “Everyone is trying to accomplish something big, not realizing that life is made up of little things”

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender