Wheel of Life: Balancing Your Growth for a Happier, More Fulfilling Life

•  Life consists of many important elements-craft, health, relationships, self-growth, finances, fun, among other aspects. One area or two can get an exaggerated share of attention, while others just languish—that being very risky or stressful. The Wheel of Life is a simple but fairly magical visualization that lets you visualize and balance those areas for yourself, on the actual way toward happier living.

•  Imagine a circle segmented out into 6, 7, or 8 slices, each representing an area important in a person’s life. On each area, you give a rate that tells how satisfied you are (1 stands for very dissatisfied, whereas 10 stands for very satisfied). If you plot them on the wheel itself, it gives a clear visible representation of the balance or imbalance that a person’s life may have.
  
  For instance, Sarah, a busy marketing manager, came to realize as she was working on her wheel of life that while she gave her career a high rating of 9, she had only a 4 for health and 3 for social life. Great accomplishments were hers in the career field, yet she felt tired and lonely.

  This wonderful revelation made Sarah see her work over investment at the expense of her well-being and relationships. To rekindle health, she booked time three times a week for evening walks and also made it a point to catch up with friends on a monthly basis through friendly meetups.

  Another example is John, software engineer. For John, his wheel gave high scores for career, relationships, and finances, but merely a 2 for personal growth. On one hand, he felt professional and social comfort; on the other, he felt stuck and bored.

   With this mindset, John started to work several programming languages on the side by taking two evenings off for an online course. In addition, he started going to a tech group, which gave a kick to his comfort zone and sparked new activities and interest on his part. In just a few months, personal-growth satisfaction ratings soared for John.

• The Wheel of Life is not a tool to attain perfection, but awareness. You may not see an ideal balancing being the same as others will depending on the priorities and stage in life they are in. The key is again reflection with honesty in identifying those areas who require more attention.
  
•  You will also want to continually assess the wheel on a monthly or quarterly basis, depending on various life changes. What felt good and balanced back then must change due to new challenges, goals, or circumstances. Regular check-ins will guide time to make the necessary adjustments instead of spinning into stress or burnout.

• To get the process started, write down 6-8 life areas that are top of the list for you: maybe health, career, relationships, finances, growth, fun, and spirituality. Be truthful with yourself in rating your satisfaction, then ponder which areas might be energy drains and which areas treat you like an energy drainer.

•  Then, and this is the important bit, don’t try to work on everything all together. Concentrate on one or two areas, set junior goals, and, eventually, those few measured steps will build a life that feels right, where every part is worthy of love. 

The Life Balance Wheel converts amorphous feelings of overwhelm into crystal clear action plans, making it easier to walk down the path of balanced success on your terms.