When needs are being met, then Interest and Participation levels are in balance; and when needs are not being met, then Interest and Participation levels are not in balance.
But there is something more to balanced Interest and Participation levels. They free us up to notice new qualia. Like standing in the center of a seesaw, if we are out of balance, all we can notice is our feet as we struggle to stay safe. But once in balance we are free to look around, to look further afield. We can see beyond our own landscape and into others. We can discern the ecosystem.
For more on Interest and Participation levels, see “Glossary” on the Planet Qualia blog page, and look up Qualia Quotient. Or read Planet Qualia.