Life Balance Assessment

admin — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:25:53 +0000

We know a healthy, effective life is a balance of family, fun, health, community, and spirituality. Just as a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, your well-being can be undermined by weakness in one of these areas. Can you see how a nagging health issue, a troubled relationship, or stress can affect you?

Is your life in balance in all the 8 areas? Or could it have a weak link that you may not be aware of?

Here’s a scale to tell. Print this page. Rate on a scale of 1-10, 10 being completely happy with this item.

On the low numbers, you can write specifically what you’d like to have.

Physical

__ General health

__ Appearance

__ Sleep well

__ Eat healthy food

__ Drink plenty of good water

__ Receive touch or hugs

__ Ideal weight

__ Fitness level

__ Regular exercise

__ Flexibility

__ Strength training

__ Enough energy each day

__ Adequate personal hygiene

__ Home environment clean, functional, beautiful

__ Safe neighborhood

__ Other

Mental/Emotional

__ Happy and content

__ Self-worth

__ Feel loved and supported

__ Practice forgiveness – no outstanding grievances

__ Enough time to do what you need to

__ Learning in areas I’m interested in

__ Emotionally secure

__ Not easily angered

__ Fear does not control my life

__ No unhealthy addictions – smoking, alcohol, etc.

__ Other

Spiritual

__ Spiritually secure

__ Live in peace

__ Life has meaning

__ Connection w/a Higher Power

__ Pray or meditate regularly

__ Participate in a spiritual community

__ Express love to others

__ Other

Financial

__ Financially secure

__ Income stable

__ Follow a budget within my means

__ Basic needs met

__ Enough money to do what I want

__ Necessary insurance

__ Savings

__ Net worth

__ Credit good

__ Debt level

__ Plan for retirement, estate plan, and will

__ Clear investment strategy

__ Access to financial advice

__ Other

Professional

__ Doing what I love

__ Expert in my field

__ Performing at a level of excellence

__ Productive

__ Competent

__ Challenged by my work

__ Growing professionally

__ Skills level

__ Communication

__ Teamwork

__ Advancing in my industry

__ Other

Relationships

__ Spouse

__ Children

__ Parents

__ Siblings

__ Healthy romance

__ Friends

__ Co-workers

__ Authority

__ Subordinates

__ Mentors to learn from

__ Spend time with people I love

__ Sense of belonging

__ I am accountable

__ Good boundaries

__ Other

Recreation

__ Live in a nourishing environment

__ Take time for myself

__ Have fun in my life

__ Do activities that recharge me

__ Take great vacations

__ Travel to places I want to go

__ Experience nature

__ Other

Service

__ I know my life’s purpose and passion

__ Contribute time or help to others

__ Donate money to causes I care about

__ Actively support a cause I care about

__ Feel fulfilled

__ Make a difference

__ Feel like my life matters

__ Other

Now take a look at the category of yours with the lowest numbers. Were you surprised?

Now circle 1 or 2 things of that category that are most important to you. Would you be willing in the next week or month to take an action step to improve these? If you like, write that action step at the top of the page, and the date you would like to have it done.

You can write: “By _____ date, I will do _____.”

You can also copy this page into an email, and send it to me for our coaching.

For coaching, call Bess at (512) 569-1139.

Magic Happens

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 23:07:29 +0000

This blog is about the magic that is all around us.

I hope it is a testimony to the miracle of life, and to the invisible layers at play, that we can behold in wonder like a child.

Do you ever feel alone, discouraged, or heavy? Like life’s challenges are bigger than you? Like there’s so much negativity in the world, how can we ever clean up the mess we’ve made?

I do at times. Then I remember the Magic.

How do our bodies heal themselves? It seems a miracle to me that I can cut, tear, break, or bruise my body, and it repairs itself! How the heck does it know how to fix skin with skin cells?

I have attended births and deaths. I saw the spark of life, or Soul, enter a body; and leave a body that is quite limp without it. That Soul thing is invisible, but very real. It gives the spark in the eye, and makes things move.

When my mother died last fall, my beautiful cousin from Colorado, who I hadn’t seen for 40 years, showed up 2 hours before and helped me through it. How did she hit it so on the button? Nobody knew exactly when Mom would die. My cousin had a nudge, though, “Go right NOW!” She did.

She and Mom got to see each other, and I got the best support I could think of. My cousin is a hospice nurse. Magic…

Since then, I’ve gotten inner impressions of my mom very glowing and happy.

Magic….

You think of a friend. They call.

You arrive at the exact time to help someone with exactly what they need.

You think you can’t go on, and someone sends the perfect YouTube story.

A few years back I was in school to be a healer. I had some free time between semesters. I inwardly invited whoever needed my work: “Let’s find each other.” My phone rang off the hook! I didn’t have time to do the promo I had planned to do. Some of my clients that summer were people I knew; some found my info. One man said my card just appeared in his coat pocket!

Magic…

I once experienced defensiveness growing between my ex-husband and me. Especially for the sake of our son, I wanted harmony. I imagined talking with my ex, Soul to Soul, above the emotional reactive area. I told him I only wished him well. From that day on, we have had harmony and good will between us.

Magic?

10 years ago, as my mother aged, I said to myself, “I want to be there for her.” I wasn’t sure how, as I was in California, and she was in Kansas. Well, circumstances moved me to Austin, which was only a day’s drive away. My first visit up there found her on the floor with a broken leg! The doctor said she wouldn’t have survived the night! How did it happen that I was there at THAT moment?

Or that when she fell that second time, I was in the next room? I get chills…

It helps me to remember these times, and even write about them to you. I know there’s Something that loves me and us and is working for me. Not to make life easy, but to make the challenges doable.

I know I need problems to grow spiritual muscle. I feel there’s Something keeping me from getting too much, though. This Something is REAL. And with me. And always carefully gives me what I need to meet these challenges. It cares. And ONLY brings what is good for my spiritual growth.

Some call this God, Spirit, or whatever name they relate to. I trust it. Except when I worry! That’s why I like stories like these. They remind me. I hope they help.

I’d love to hear yours. I know you have some. I invite you to share them in the comments below.

Thank you!

Bess