Our Wheel Of Life

The following is a repost of a very popular article I wrote back in June of 2006. It bears repeating and I hope that you enjoy reading it once again.

"Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony."
- Thomas Merton

I listened to a friend of mine, Dean Sweetman, speak about the areas of one's life which need to be tended to in order to have a full and balanced life. These areas are different aspects of our existence. Some of you may know of these, some may not. It is quite possible that you are quite good in one and quite bad in another. But understanding and then acting upon all of them is the important thing, achieving balance is the goal.

There are six areas one must focus on in order to first get your life in order, second to get your life moving in a positive direction and lastly to achieve even greater potential in life. He describes these as the six spokes of life. Think of them as the spokes on the wheel of your life. Without all of them, the wheel can not turn freely.

Your heart and mind is at the hub of this wheel with an ability to change each spoke. As the hub of this wheel, you must tend to each spoke with care and understanding of its importance. The six spokes we speak of here are;

• Financial and Career
• Social and Cultural
• Spiritual and Moral
• Family and Home
• Mental and Emotional
• Physical and Health

Over the next couple of days I'll speak to each of these. It is my belief that a 'full wheel' can take you places. If one or two spokes are gone, in disrepair, the wheel is not complete. It can not take you places in a broken state.

Yet a wheel with all of the spokes can move you. As each spoke improves, the wheel can gain momentum. Accelerating you to a great life is what can happen by understanding these six keys areas of life.

"Everyone is meant to have a great life. Your circumstance should not deter you from experiencing it." - Dean Sweetman

Stay inspired my friends!

Spinning Your Life

What a wonderful picture to describe many of our lives. We are running around trying to accomplish so much, just barely staying ahead of the wobbling plates. In a quote from David Lassiter, in a book in which he talks about our lives at times, he says, "we all spin all those plates. We've got the work plate, the family plate, the health plate and the friends plate. We spin too many plates. We need to pick the most important plates and begin to slow down."

Our lives are so busy and I can not say it is any worse today then it was many, many years ago. What I tend to think is that it is the same as it has always been. In Dean Sweetman's teachings on the Wheel Of Life, we need to find balance in all parts of our lives. This wheel is not the cure all and end all to our life problems. It is a tool you can use to find out where you are and to identify those areas you may need to work on.

If you want to better your own life, you need to identify those areas most important and to strike a balance. Some plates may fall and the crashing may be painful. But know that your life can be greater. Spin the plates that matter.

Stay inspired my friends.

Living Older, Better

I learned today that my friend Dean Sweetman is taking his vision of the Wheel of Life into a book. It takes a look on how to balance your life so that you can improve and experience a great life. When I am able to, I'll make sure that I give everyone a link to the book.

As often happens when I begin to work on each of my blogs, one thing leads into another and knowing that Dean is writing his book, a recent article came to mind. This particular article was written by Dr. Tedd Mitchell. Just a short but relevant article providing advice for those of us that are growing older or are of an older age.

He provides these following habits that if followed can improve your longevity and quality of life.

- Stop smoking. It's a big health threat.
- Exercise to keep your body strong.
- Nourish yourself with proper nutrition.
- Involve family members and friends in your health care.
- Observe follow-up orders; partner with a doctor for preventative maintenance.
- Read to stimulate your brain.
- Sleep to rejuvenate your body and recharge your batteries.
- Regularly practice safe driving skills.
- Understand your medical condition(s) and any medications.
- Lose weight. Longevity is associated with light body weight.
- Ensure good vision and hearing through regular eye and ear exams.

With there being so many of our loved ones including ourselves living to an older age, let us enjoy that older age in good health.

Roll On Easier

I have spoken previously of a method that you can use to measure your life. It is called the Wheel Of Life and I was introduced to it by a friend of mine, Dean Sweetman. You can search the web and will likely find many sources that came from Buddhist traditions.

There are other forms both complicated and intriguing that you may find as well. The one taught to me is simple in form and in understanding. A wheel with six spokes that when perfectly round will allow your life to move easily. As an out of round wheel is hard to turn and slows you down, that particular part of your life needs to be worked on.

In previous articles I wrote of these spokes and I'm pleased that Dean is working this into a whole series. It is my hope that he creates a book so that he can offer it to others. But don't think it is a 'pump you up' motivational event full of heart pounding excitement. No, the idea is just a simple way for you to look at your life, to keep it in balance and to help you provide measurement of how well your life is going.

The great thing about it comes from self evaluation, measuring yourself in such a manner that honesty inside you must come forth. When you visually see the six spokes and connect the dots, the shape that takes form may be a football. Footballs when they bounce are unpredictable and never roll straight. A three-legged starfish shape may appear and three points do not roll all that well. Or even a flat-tire shape. You begin rolling but then hit the flat spot on the tire, you struggle again to get moving.

As you view the shape of your life, visually you can see what it is that slows you down each time. And when you do find a deficiency in your life, fix it now. If not, as you attempt to roll through life that area of the wheel will return.

As I'm writing this, don't envision me in a monks robe with candles spread about and chanting. It is a functional method that helps me honestly look at my life. It helps me to smooth out the rough edges and to expand my life.

Expand and improve your life, roll on easier.