Start Here Tool: Know Where You Are #jointhemovement
You May Be Setting the Wrong Goals…
Every time I hear about January 10th national “Quitters Day” I think less about motivation and more about self-knowledge.
So often I meet individuals who set goals based upon external influence and less from their internal desires or whispers.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve faced this challenge as well. Elevated the trending goal, or what others think, higher than what I truly desire. When I created this tool, it was out of necessity for Myself. I wanted to dig in and process what would come up for me.
This time next week I will have completed my first Book Signing!! Traditionally in a book signing the Author reads a passage from the book, however my personal mission is to make health and wellness more accessible while helping others find their definition of well-being. Therefore, we will be walking through this tool LIVE! I can’t wait!
7 Dimensions of Health
Let’s orient to the 7 dimensions of health. I wrote a post extensively explaining this model mid-2024.
For reference here is a brief description of each one:
Dimension
Definition
Example
Spiritual
Spiritual wellness involves possessing a set of guiding beliefs, principles, or values that help give direction to one’s life
1. Praying or meditating to connect with self 2. Caregiving 3. Finding purpose in community volunteering
Emotional
Being emotionally well is typically defined as possessing the ability to feel and express human emotions such as happiness, sadness and anger.
1. Leaning into all emotions when felt 2. Using good sleep habits to improve quality 3. Seeking counseling when complex emotions harbor day to day activities
Professional
Occupational/Vocational wellness involves preparing and making use of your gifts, skills, and talents in order to gain purpose
1. Attending a conference to learn industry best practices 2. Seeking a new job that elevates your ambitions 3. Gaining a certification to expand skillsets
Physical
Physical wellness encompasses a variety of healthy behaviors including adequate exercise, and proper nutrition.
1. Working with a Dietician to improve nutrition 2. Trying a new class at the YMCA 3. Moisturizing skin in the evening before bed
Environmental
Environmental wellness is having good health by occupying pleasant,
1. Trying an outdoor activity such as snowboarding 2. Walking in nature for a set amount of time and routine 3. Planting flowers to beutify your space
Social
Social wellness refers to our ability to interact successfully in our global community and to live up to the expectations and demands of our personal roles
1. Choosing a show to watch with a friend each week 2. Choosing the have dinner as a family a few nights a a week 3. Attending Bingo to meet new people
Intellectual
The intellectual dimension encourages creative, stimulating mental activities.
1. Starting a new hobby 2. Attending a Book Signing 🙂 3. Signing up for a Museum Membership
This tool can jumpstart your journey; connecting current status to future desires. Personally, I fill out this tool every 2 months.
Start with ranking your Current Rank in each area. Remember this is your decision, be your own judge and listen to what’s inside
Use a number scale of 1-10 to determine how rank in each dimension of
health
Give yourself a 1 if you feel your status in that dimension is very poor
Give yourself a 2-3 if you are aware and making progress, but you haven’t really started working to improve
Give yourself a 4-5 if you are aware and day to day make progress on this dimension
Give yourself a 6-7 if you are aware, making progress, and have seen some initial results from your progress
Give yourself a 8-9 if you are aware, making progress, seeing results and ready to elevate even higher
A 10 ranking means you are on target near perfect for YOUR journey in this dimension
Use the number in between to rank yourself
Future Rank
This is the number rank you want to be in the next 2 months
Please remember it is impossible to be a 10 in all dimension. We are humans not robots
Also, I highly discourage attempting to work on all 7 dimensions
This means it’s ok to rank a dimension the same in current and future
This simply means another dimension is more important to you at this time
Steps to Improve
Here, I want you to list 2-3 bullets of immediate small steps you wil take to improve the future ranked items you want to improve on.
This exercise should take 15-20 min
Let yourself have this time….
I’ve spent thousands of hours combing through research, literature, interviews with health experts, and personal years of health experience. What I know for sure is: greatest eureka came when I realized you can’t have all 7 dimensions at once. But you CAN prioritize each one in your life and make gains!
In closing, I’ve worked with several individuals that have filled in this tool, their results often and surprising, meaningful, and even made them more concious of their own desires they had been putting off. Together, let’s start. movement. Listen to our internal whispers, than external influence.
That’s where REAL Growth and satisfaction will occur.
Want more Content?
Be prepared to make this book messy! Seventeen months into my personal wellness journey, a lightbulb hit. The 7 dimensions of health model, is an ongoing journey, not a destination. So, I chose to create the journal I wish I had. Elevating your health helps everyone in your life. This journal is filled with “quick read” nuggets and easy to follow templates that will help you swag and sway between each health dimension attuned to personal harmony.
