How would you describe your life as a mom? Do you feel your life is hectic and tiring or
balanced and fun? In The Momnificient Life, author and life coach Lori Radun coined
the word "momnificent" to refer to moms who lead a positive, healthy and balanced life. Radun guides
readers through personal development, spirituality, enjoyment, relationships, health and aging,
personal finance, career and profession, and home and family. While the book’s theme focuses on
strengthening families and being the best parent you can be, it is also about balancing all
aspects of your life.
Living a balanced life depends on eight crucial elements: your confidence, ability to set
healthy boundaries, positive energy for yourself and others, healthy and supportive relationships,
life balance, spiritual foundation, self care, and being a nurturing and effective parent. Most
people are struggling in at least one of these areas. One of the most important things to
remember is that you are working toward balance, not perfection. Radun suggests analyzing your
outer and inner life before tackling the other life areas. In a circular diagram, each outer life
area has a corresponding inner area, such as the outer life of spirituality with the inner life
of purpose. By answering questions related to your life and activities, you may realize a current
problem is caused by not honoring your inner life or values. How many times have you felt
frustrated and that you weren’t accomplishing much? In one of the book’s examples, one mom
looked closer at her daily activities, realized she did have enough time, and did accomplish
quite a lot each day. What was the problem? She rarely did things she enjoyed. Once she
identified her values and beliefs, she could start doing more things that were important and
valuable to her. Her overwhelming frustration faded away because her life was more in balance.
Because The Momnificent Life is packed full of advice and guidance, readers
will want to keep the book as a reference as they work toward balance in all life areas. The
59 short chapters identify positive values, personal examples from both Radun’s life and practice,
and thought-provoking questions. Each chapter ends with a "take action assignment," which helps
readers make life changes. The first chapter is a must-read to determine what areas may need
more balance, but then readers can skip to any chapter and work on a specific trouble spot.
Radun’s prose is confident and understanding, while reminding moms that addressing any of the
areas is not to promote guilt nor to achieve perfection. Moms tend to gravitate towards books
that can solve a specific parenting problem but often don’t take other life areas into account.
The goal of The Momnificent Life is loftier, thorough, and lasting: you can enjoy
a fun and fulfilling life, balanced with love, health, and happiness. Highly recommended.