Work-Life Balance isn’t a thing…at least in the modern way we consider it. Each week is made up of 168 hours (112 if you take out 8 hours a night for sleep). And work shouldn’t be half of that (even if 53 hours a week would be less work for some of our colleagues).
Also…work is one thing, life is everything…so again it’s not something we should consider as 50/50 AND work is PART of life, not separate from it…so it’s really either work/life/sleep/family/friends/health/etc balance…or it’s just life balance.
So how do you figure out where you change things to achieve happiness?
Either A) you’re a super awesome magic unicorn who knows exactly what you want and just keep working towards that – the mountain and Neil Gaiman calls it.
Or B) you’re like me…and all we can really do is look at what we are doing now and work backwards. So let’s look at a Wheel of Life
The Wheel of Life
How to Create a Wheel of Life
- Draw the Wheel:
- Draw a circle and divide it into eight equal triangular sections, like slices of a pie or spokes of a wheel.
- Label the Sections:
- Label each section with one of these life areas:
- Relationships
- Career
- Finances/Money
- Health
- Enjoyment/Personal Fulfillment
- Personal Growth/Learning
- Environment
- Spirituality
- Label each section with one of these life areas:
- Rate Your Satisfaction:
- On a scale from 1 to 10 (with 10 being the highest), rate your current satisfaction in each area.
- Shade in each section up to the corresponding number.
- Analyze the Wheel:
- Look at your wheel to see which areas are strongest (most shaded) and which need more attention (least shaded).
- Set Future Goals:
- Rate the level of satisfaction you aim to have in each area in the future.
- Reflect on what goals to set to improve the areas that need attention.
Who Created the Wheel of Life?
The Wheel of Life® was created by Paul J. Meyer in the 1960s. Meyer was the founder of the Success Motivation Institute and a pioneer in the self-improvement field. He designed the Wheel of Life® to help individuals identify how they could reach their full potential by pinpointing areas of life that needed improvement.
(a)Wheel of life by Paul J. Meyer; (b)Wheel of life by Paul J. Meyer (example completed).
1. Body (Score: 7)
Pros: I get a solid amount of sleep each night, I exercise regularly (and enjoy it), and I take my greens every day and am working on my nutrition. I think of this stuff like Captain America getting his super-soldier serum.
Cons: I’m still around 30% body fat (with a goal to hit 20 by the end of the year. Food is still my struggle.
Changes moving forward: Get back to eating like I did during 75 hard at least 80% of the time.
What about you? Are you more young Willy Wonka singing and dancing and running around town selling chocolate? Or more like the dirty cop at the end unable to get out of the car due to the bribes?
2. Mind (Score: 8)
Pros: I read a LOT of books (over 70 so far this year). I also got back into crossword puzzles and play trivia every now and then. And no, I did NOT change any of these to fit some of the Infinity Stones…sometimes things just work out that way.
Cons: I am not terribly structured about what I learn…by that I mean I don’t take classes or courses, I just look at what seems fun and interesting to me which can lead to me going an inch deep on a lot of topics instead of getting to the next level of knowledge on the things that matter to me. It would be like if Tony Stark stopped building the Iron Man suit about he got out of the cave and then tried fighting with those limits.
Changes moving forward: Get more intentional about what I actually need to know and then go deeper on that
What about you? What are you focused on learning?
3. Soul (Score: 7)
Pros: I have time for myself, and can use it to feed my soul. Sometimes it’s massages, other times it’s long reading sessions (or just watching TV on the couch)
Cons: I’m not huge on organized religion (any of them) so it’s a lot like the prior one where I get to go as deep as I want to, but don’t force myself or follow a plan to go deeper on things. More Yoda happy on Dagobah than Luke angry drinking blue milk.
Changes Moving Forward: I want to start meditating (or trying to). I also put together a gratitude/life journal that I want to have Amazon print for me and start using (don’t worry if this happens I’ll share it with you).
What keeps your soul fulfilled? Are you spending enough time on yourself?
4. Mission (Score: 5)
Pros: I’m driven by a mission to end lawyer suicide and support amazing business owners
Cons: yet I’m unsure how to enhance my impact. Like early Spiderman trying to be Peter Parker AND Spidey at the same time.
Changes Moving Forward: I want to get more speaking engagements to try and get my message out there so I can help more people. I also plan to launch a show/podcast in August (or maybe start recording in August) to help more people find my message and get free help from it (or hire me to help them one on one).
Do you know what your mission is? Do you feel fully engaged with it?
5. Money (Score: 8)
Pros: My FA keeps telling me that if I keep doing what I am doing I have a 90-ish% chance of retiring the way I want (which is at 48 when my kid turns 18 and involves a LOT of travel).
Cons: I’m Jewish (I know I said organized religion above…but unorganized or culturally)…so…kidding (mostly). But seriously…1) I am a lawyer so I am CONSTANTLY concerned that anything/everything I am currently doing will stop working (having a state governor who genuinely tries to put me out of business doesn’t help) and 2) I enjoy making bets with my money…not the put it all on black kind…but the let’s earmark $10,000 towards this marketing campaign or business idea and see how it goes. I would like to have more of those opportunities and at higher scales…kind of like Batman trying out new gadgets but less to overcome some emotional scarring from the death of his parents and more Jordan trying to help more people.
Changes Moving Forward: I think a lot of this is the same as above. More coaching clients (or maybe a group program) would help and I have a LOT of other business ideas when the mood strikes.
How about you? Are you on track to retire? Do you manage your financial goals and stresses?
6. Growth (Score: 4)
Pros: I have lots of ideas on what else to do/add to my life
Cons: I have LOTS of ideas on what else to do/add to my life. I am pretty sure I am being overly critical here…but still…I see the gap a lot more than I see the gain. Like Harry Potter unsure about how to defeat Voldemort for the 7th time and not remembering he did it the prior 6 times.
Changes Moving Forward: See above. Podcast/show. Maybe a group program to allow people into more specific help at a lower price point…
What’s your next big growth step? What do you want to achieve moving forward?
7. Family (Score: 8)
Pros: I get to spend a LOT of time with my family.
Cons: I wish I had more time with just my wife. And my son has BOUNDLESS energy. Over mothers day weekend we got a place on the beach and he dug holes in the sand for 7 hours. Dig the hole…fill the hole…dig again…fill again. FOR SEVEN HOURS. Guess which one of us was exhausted afterwards? Hint – it wasn’t the 6 year old). And yes, I do think this is something that they wouldn’t be able to force upon prisoners as it would be cruel and unusual punishment…but my kid LOVED it.
Changes Moving Forward: Continuing to lose weight and stay healthy would help towards part of this. And making sure to schedule more time with just my wife instead of turning every night we can spend out into a double date/networking opportunity.
Do you WANT to spend more time with your family? How do you find energy and alignment with family after a long day?
8. Romance (Score: 7)
Pros: I still LIKE my wife (and love her)
Cons: See above, lots of nights become networking events or group dinners or our son playing third wheel. Some nights I want more Han and Leia after he gets unfrozen in carbonite and less…whatever the heck happened that led their son to murder his father…
Changes Moving Forward: See above
Are you making time for romance? What strategies do you use?
9. Friends (Score: 9)
Pros: I am REALLY lucky here. I have an amazing group of friends (quality over quantity) and many of them are also referral sources or clients or mentors or both.
Cons: I reach out to other people a lot more than they reach out to me. I think this is probably pretty common and for some of them…it’s MY job to keep them as a referral source, not their job. I am more Nick Fury assembling the Avengers then Ant-Man just showing up to the party.
Changes Moving Forward: Not much to change…maybe try some more small group lunches so I can see more people more often.
Do you keep your friends separate from mentors/referral sources/etc? How do you cultivate and maintain your friendships?
This exploration is like tuning your favorite Batmobile/Delorean/Millenium Falcon. Knowing where you stand today helps you navigate where you need to go tomorrow.
Until then, keep your capes ready and your spirits high!