Practice Ways with Selina Barker
Time to Thrive
Practice Ways is a monthly feature on Balance Practice that shares notes from writers, makers, coaches, and creatives, offering perspectives on what balance looks like as real life is happening.
Having just launched her new journal, Time to Thrive, Selina generously shares her notes on prioritising rest that’s urgently needed, self-supporting practices and, of course, balance. I especially love the invitation she’s extended to all of us at the end, read on!
Balance, for me, is responsive, intuitive and fluid. And there is a creativity and freedom to doing it that way that I really enjoy.
– Selina Barker
What’s feeling really good to you in this season?
I have just come out of what has been a three month intensive creative process, writing and recording Time to Thrive — my brand new journal and audio guide — your toolkit for more energy, less stress and a life that feels good.
But rather than throwing myself into a big book (or rather journal) launch - which I had originally planned to do — I have chosen to rest.
I’m still celebrating the journal being out in the world, but in a way that works for me. And as a recovering workaholic and overachiever that feels wonderfully radical and something I’m feeling very proud of myself for.
Plus summer really is my favourite season and so I am savouring the warm sunny days in my garden in London. And now I’m going through Time to Thrive myself as a user, I’m adding new practices and rituals to my day that are really making a difference — from journaling every day (something that I hadn’t done for years) to regular walk and talks with my husband which have really shifted something in our relationship in the most unexpected way. I still can’t believe quite what a difference these simple things have made to my energy levels and happiness. It’s good to see that Time to Thrive really does work — even on me!
What does balance look like for you right now?
I’ve learnt over the years that balance for me doesn’t come from a perfectly designed daily routine (although in theory, that always sounds lovely). For me, it looks like tuning in — listening to what my body, heart, mind and soul need — and then responding through the choices I make in the moment and how I design my week.
Sometimes that means starting work later than planned so I can ease into the day with journaling and yoga. Other times it means jumping out of bed at 6am because I’m buzzing with ideas and want to dive in before the rest of the house wakes. And sometimes, it means throwing out the plan altogether — like choosing to rest instead of pushing through with a big launch.
Balance, for me, is responsive, intuitive and fluid. And there is a creativity and freedom to doing it that way that I really enjoy.
What practices support your sense of balance?
I have a pretty fast-moving fizzy energy, which left unchecked can have me spinning out of control. For many years it’s what had me caught in a cycle of workaholism and mini-burnouts. So these days I have a lot of practices that help to keep me grounded and my nervous system regulated. I don’t have a daily routine, more of a daily menu of options that I choose from — on that menu are yoga and meditation, a walk in my local park or a strength training session in my kitchen. Journaling most days (like I say, that’s a new one for me, but I’m loving it). Regular planning sessions. And any time I start to feel myself spinning out I know what helps me to calm myself back down, get perspective and address the stress - usually more movement, talking it out with a friend, getting all the to-dos out of my head and onto a piece of paper, or closing up my laptop and having an early night.
As well as that, I’m a big advocate of designing your life — which is what my Goodbye, Hello annual journal is all about (Goodbye 2025, Hello 2026 is coming soon!) and so taking the time to reflect, dream and design my life so that I’m filling it with the ingredients that make me come alive, plays a vital role in supporting my sense of balance.
What’s one gesture toward center you’d invite everyone reading to partake with you today?
I stumbled across a quote by Harold Whitman many many years ago that blew my world open. It gave me a compass with which to navigate life and it’s been my compass ever since, helping me create a career and a way of living and working that really does make me feel so alive. It’s a wonderful quote to bring you back to your centre and it’s this:
Don’t ask what the world needs,
Ask what makes you come alive
And then go and do that
Because what the world needs
Is people who have come alive
My invitation is to ask yourself what makes you come alive? And then today, at least in some small way, go and do that.
Selina Barker is a Career and Life Design Coach, author of Burnt Out, and the creator of the Project You journals. For nearly 20 years, she’s been helping big-hearted, creative people break free from burnout and build lives and careers they truly love. She’s coached everyone from Google and Apple execs to best-selling authors and artists, and her work’s been featured in The Telegraph, Sunday Times Style, Guardian, BBC and more. Selina also hosts the podcast Another Way and runs a Substack membership of the same name—home to pep-talks, prompts, and practical inspiration for designing life your way. She lives in London with her husband and their 10-year-old son. Learn more at selinabarker.com.
Selina sounds great! I have signed up to her pod🫶🏻
Love that quote… aliveness is my compass and never fails to redirect me! X