I began to work once more on the patio area where our picnic table will be this morning. I had stopped for awhile to catch up a few other projects, but now I’m back at work.

It is very tricky to work in this area because there is a natural slope two different ways. I’ve taken the area down as far as possible while keeping a gentle slope that I can work with and still make it level enough to set a picnic table on.

There are odd corners to deal with from our poured concrete patio that we’ve had a few years but is too small to hold everything. And, there’s the house to deal with.

I noticed the pavers started to go a little wonky the more I laid them in. That’s when I decided to “split the difference.”

Definition of “split the difference” — When dealing with money, “If you split the difference with someone, you agree on an amount or price which is halfway between two suggested amounts or prices.” (According to Collins online dictionary.) “Both parties agree to meet halfway.” (According to Forbes.com.)

For me, when I split the difference in laying down the pavers, I am in an area where they can’t be butted up together and look right. So I have to split the difference and move them so they are in the center of the space and the joint on each side is close to being the same width. It takes a lot of looking at it from different angles and getting the best position. When I fill it in with Polymeric sand, the differences will be less noticeable.

I’ve also had to lay the pavers in a very random pattern to make them fit. There are so many ways to make something come out right, or at least look like it came out right. I think the same could be said of life.

You have to split the difference on your time and give different areas of your life certain amounts of your time while drawing from other areas to have enough time to spread around.

Sometimes you have to split the difference in relationships. One party moves a little then the other party moves a little—and the situation looks better.

What ways have you found to split the difference and make things work better?