Are you winning at life or do you feel that a change is in order? Midlife and menopause can do that to you! But it can be a real opportunity to reflect and review and ultimately make a change for the better.
Change is not an easy process and habits are hard to break. The good news is that having some specific, measurable, achievable goals with a clear timeframe is a great starting point. The first step is to decide what it is that needs to change and a life review can be a great starting point.
Perform a Life Review.
There are many Pillars of well-being that you could work on to create balanced harmony in your life. Physical (my favourite), intellectual, emotional, social, spiritual, career, financial and environmental. All the areas don’t have to be equally balanced, but they all require attention, and all the areas are interconnected.
It depends on your starting point which areas require the most attention. A great way to visualise the areas needing the most attention is by completing the wheel of life (below). The areas requiring action will quickly become apparent.
Complete your Wheel of Life
Consider your satisfaction with the various areas of your life described below. This does not mean the amount of time you spend on each area, but how satisfied you are with the quality of each area below:
- Physical: Personal care for your body to stay healthy, utilising exercise, nutrition, sufficient sleep, and function optimally.
- Intellectual: Intellectual growth by staying curious, remaining a student to be a better teacher and sharing your growing knowledge base and skill set.
- Emotional: Learning how to manage your emotions in a positive, constructive manner and appreciating other people’s feelings. Understand and respect your feelings, values, and attitude.
- Social: Nurture healthy, caring, and intimate relationships while enjoying companionship. Stay involved with your community by contributing positively.
- Spiritual: Find purpose, value, and meaning in your own life without or with organized religion. Engage in activities that align with your beliefs and values.
- Career: Meaningful and rewarding participation in your work that provides personal satisfaction and life enrichment aligned with your values, goals, and lifestyle.
- Financial: Self-awareness to live within your means and make informed financial decisions while setting realistic short and long-term goals to provide for you and your family. The awareness that not everyone has the same monetary values, needs, and circumstances.
- Environmental: Demonstrate your commitment to a healthy planet and be aware of how your daily choices might contribute to the instability of the earth’s ever-changing state of the physical environment.
Now Score Yourself
On a scale from 0 to 10, where 1 represents very low satisfaction and 10 represents very high satisfaction. Rate your satisfaction with each of the areas of your life. Next, connect the points you’ve plotted on each spoke, and shade in the area that reaches toward the centre of the wheel.
Review
Reflect upon and write your answers to the following questions:
- How balanced is your wheel?
- In what areas were the results a surprise?
- What would it take to move one of the lower numbers up a level or two?
Reset
Now it’s time to set some SMART Goals to provide a clear roadmap and the motivation to stick to your guns.
- SMART goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound
- Make sure your goals are well-defined and achievable
- Track progress with concrete targets like mastering an exercise for example
- Break down larger goals into smaller milestones for some quick wins
- Stay flexible and adjust your goals as necessary
- Regularly evaluate your progress and celebrate achievements to stay motivated
- Seek support from friends, family, or fitness professionals aids to overcome obstacles and waning enthusiasm
Goal setting can really help us to stick to our guns when making changes to create lasting habits that have a positive impact on our well-being.
Make Health a Habit
If caring for your Physical health and well-being is an area needing your attention. I CAN HELP!
A great way to make sure our good intentions become habits for life is to have systems in place to support those habits. I have worked long and hard to develop my tried and tested system that can support you to make a change!
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Author:
Phillipa Butler Chartered Physiotherapist, Certified Pilates and Hatha Yoga Teacher
