What’s Your Life Balance Barometer?

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When I first saw this story in Travel Weekly about Princess doing a survey on the most stressed out cities in the US I was intrigued. I mean – cruise lines have been helping people de-stress for decades. While I wouldn’t consider this survey Pulitzer material, it’s certainly an interesting read for those of us who want to sell more vacations. (If you want Pulitzer, I’ve been telling people for over a decade that a cruise is the best vacation money can buy.)

irate-cust-510 The Princess survey was done in conjunction with Harris Interactive who specializes in custom market research. The press release also referenced Dr. Kathleen Hall, founder of The Stress Institute, who believes learning how to deal with stress is one of the most important things Americans can do to lead more balanced lives.

According to the survey the top-five things Americans feel will help them achieve better life balance include realizing financial success, improving physical fitness, getting organized and taking more breaks and vacations. Yet one in four Americans aren’t planning to take a vacation in the next year. (Siting “work-related” reasons for not taking one.) As a side note – these same Americans (particularly those living in Washington, D.C.) don’t think the President of the United States should be given any vacation days either.

Here’s the list of America’s Most Stressed Out Cities

1. Chicago
2. Houston
3. Boston
4. Los Angeles
5. San Diego
6. Denver
7. San Francisco
8. Detroit
9. Tampa (tie)
9. Portland, Ore. (tie)
10. Seattle
11. Washington, D.C. (tie)
11. Baltimore (tie)
12. Sacramento
13. Pittsburgh
14. Philadelphia
15. New York
16. Phoenix
17. Atlanta
18. St. Louis
19. Minneapolis
20. Cincinnati
21. Las Vegas
22. Dallas/Fort Worth
23. Miami

Not surprising that the least stressed city in the survey has a major cruise port. (Hummmm)

I found the Princess Press release and the findings are an interesting read. Some of them include that 72 percent of Americas say they do not have balance in their lives, but there is hope. Slightly more than half believe they can achieve life balance in the next five years. The survey also noted that the poor economy is a leading causes for life imbalance, followed by the need to lose weight.

My solution to achieve life balance? I’m going to tote the Princess line here – “escape completely” on a luxury cruise liner for a week. Have someone else do the cooking and cleaning, enjoy the romance of the sea, and there’s something about the turquoise water that just soothes the soul.

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