A strong and balanced foundation is essential to the longevity and well being of any home. One shift, intrusion or unwanted settlement on the lowest level can result in the whole house becoming off-kilter. Slanting rooms, cracks in the plaster and splitting tiles in the upper areas are all evidence of something amiss down below. A general feeling of uneasiness can pervade as you walk through even a visually striking home if you feel and see that something is out of balance.
It can be conscious or unconscious. Many times I can be enjoying a visit to a prospective home that my buyers are considering. Yet, as I walk through I start to notice diagonal cracks stemming from a doorway, tiles in a shower that have moved and are no longer aligned and the biggest telltale sign; a room that slants to one corner. I make a mental note to take a very close look at the foundation as we work our way to the bottom level.
When we arrive at the lowest level, which I leave for the last part of the investigation, I sometimes see a crumbling foundation, evidence of water intrusion and/or soil erosion so serious that there are tiny caverns under the house. This unbalanced and “diseased” foundation results in the visible signs in the upper rooms . These symptoms are indicators of the serious conditions below. Most often, this home is scrapped from our list because the current owners have not addressed the serious deferred maintenance issues regarding the most important part of the home, the foundation.
Much like the foundation of a home, there are aspects of your life that if left unbalanced or unhealthy can adversely affect your well being.
Much like the foundation of a home, there are aspects of your life that if left unbalanced or unhealthy can adversely affect your well being. Conversely, you can live in a perfect looking home home yet if any of the four essential elements of a perfect life foundation are off kilter, your life will feel unsettled and perhaps without meaning. Much like the cracks in the plaster and the tilting hallway, your life may look beautiful to others and yet you may have this unsettled and uneasy feeling that something down below, deep inside of your being just isn’t right.
These four foundational lifestyle elements all conveniently start with the letter M. They are Master, Mission, Mate and MySelf. We will examine these four foundational elements closer, much like the investigation during a home tour, to see how they each might be affecting the outer workings and outcomes of your life. The purpose here is to uncover any major underlying issues in your life that will spoil your attempts towards happiness in your lifestyle and in your home.
