You’ve come back from an Xmas and New Year break potentially heralding newfound resolutions and professions to do things differently this year in order to put your wellbeing back on the radar.

Perhaps you may be feeling delightfully balanced, having nurtured body, soul and mind and are determined to maintain this sense of calm and contentment. 

Leadership is both a rewarding and demanding role and we can’t expect to lead others unless we first lead ourselves. Too often I see people (and have been one myself) who start the year with a hiss-and-a-roar, yet when the pressures of work come-on put everything and everyone else but ourselves first. It is then that we can plummet into a downward spiral of ill-being – not going for that walk, having that extra piece of cake at shared morning-teas, locking yourself away at night or over the weekends to do more work, having that extra glass of something, or isolating yourself from family and friends. Sure everything in moderation, but when you find these things become the norm, then a stock-take needs to be done.

The incredible Mason Durie created the model of Te Whare Tapa Whā (1994) which looks at the different dimensions of hauora. I would like to suggest that there may be other factors that can also influence our well-being, including financial pressure, your environment, career and personal development opportunities to name a few. Each of us have different elements that can either help or hinder our sense of well-being; identifying these is the first point of call.

Once identified you may wish to complete an audit on each element. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being ‘amazing’) how do you rate each element? Where are there places of mis-alignment? Where are your strengths? Where do you need to place more mindfulness in order to regain better balance? The concept of balance in itself is an ever-moving beast, and if we think we have it mastered then forget it, over time we will revert to old habits until we get out-of-kilter again. Your wellness elements need to be revisited constantly (weekly) in order to keep healthy.

This week consider:

• What are the elements that support your wellbeing?
• How do you rate them?

Maybe schedule a weekly review of these in your diary now… I know I will be! 😉

Go well this week.
Mary-Anne 🙂