The happiest people on the planet often talk about balance. When all facets of life are in balance, you’re more likely to feel good about yourself. That’s the basis for happiness.
Life balance comes from having daily focus in five separate areas of your life:
- Physical - a healthy body through diet, exercise, and sleep
- Emotional - a healthy mind
- Relationships - how you connect with those around you
- Intellectual - focusing on knowledge, creativity, and fostering a love of learning
- Spiritual - finding meaning in what you do
Well-being comes from devoting time to each area of your life every day. When one is out of balance, it can quickly force other areas of your life out of balance too. The key is recognizing this early and preventing it from spiraling out of control.
What can you do?
Track your daily progress
The easiest way is with a journal. At the end of the day, write down what worked and what went well. Did you stick to your daily habits in all five areas? Did you take one little step forward in all areas of your life? It sounds like simple advice, but evidence shows it works. Plus, if you focus on the good in your life before you go to sleep, you’re more likely to get a good night’s rest.
Play into your strengths
We all have things we love to do … and things we hate. Happy people play into their strengths and let their weaknesses and things they don’t enjoy fall by the wayside. When you work with your strengths for longer periods of the day, you feel more authentic in the work that you do. It becomes easier to be you. And as such, you enjoy your days more than ever before.
Stay in the now
When your mind strays to things you’ve done in the past or plans you need to manage in the future, worry and stress set in. Being in the now helps cultivate mindfulness and puts your mind at ease. Take in enough information to make a well-informed decision. Then stick with it and see it through. Don’t ask the “what if” questions that come along with the problems along the way. Enjoy each decision for what it brings to your life.
What do you do each day to cultivate your own well-being?