The 4 Areas of Your Life That Will Make or Break You

I hope last week I inspired you to take some M.Y. (Mellow Yellow) time. In the grand scheme of things, checking one more item off your “To-Do List” isn’t important; rather, when we spend our time on things that bring us health and happiness, those are the things that matter. Those are the things that are worth it. Those are the things that LAST.

I also want to thank you for the great response to last week’s blog. In case you missed it, you can still get it here.

For the next several weeks, I’m going to be focusing on four important themes as they pertain to living a happy and healthy life in your 50’s. If you’re not in your 50’s just yet or have just exited that decade, these next several weeks are going to be relevant to you as well. In fact, I’m so glad you’re here. We’re going to turn our attention to some areas of your life that you may not be giving much consideration to lately – maybe sort of like that Mellow Yellow time I talked about last week.

I’m excited to cover these four areas with you over the next several weeks: Sleep, Food, Mood, and Exercise.

Why am I so excited? Because I know that these are just four small words, but they have a HUGE impact on our lives. In fact, we NEED each one to be working well independently, as well as collectively, if we want to live the healthiest and happiest life possible. That is my wish for you, so let’s get started today by first just covering WHY these are all so important.

First of all, as you may know, the mind and body are connected. When we’re not sleeping well or our stress level is high, we’re not getting enough physical activity or we’re not eating healthy, we’re not at our best. They are all related and connected with one another. In other words, when one area is lacking, the other areas are affected as well. Over time, this can lead to a downward spiral.

The first step is being honest and aware of where you are today. Take a moment to rate yourself on a scale from 1-10 (“1” being “very poor” and “10” being “excellent”) on how you believe you’re doing in each area of your life right now:

Sleep: ____
Food: ____
Mood: ____
Exercise: ____

How did you size up? Were your numbers pretty consistent or were they all over the place?

Obviously, what you want are high numbers all around – the higher the better. But, maybe your numbers were pretty low overall or maybe your numbers were inconsistent.

If your numbers were not where you’d like them to be, don’t worry. I applaud you for being honest with yourself today. But, now that you’ve examined where you are, you took the first step. If you want to improve these areas, let’s not wait another day. Let’s get started with this assignment.

What I’d like you to do today is envision what it would be like if you scored an 8 or above in each area. I’d like you to not only envision it, but I’d like you to paint a picture of what it’s like for YOU.

Start by writing and painting a picture of the BEST YOU in these four areas: Sleep, Food, Mood, and Exercise.

Imagine that you’re getting as much SLEEP as you need every night to be the most productive and happy person possible. What does that look like for YOU?

Imagine you’re feeding your body with the healthiest foods that nourish and sustain you and give you bountiful energy. You’re in control of your choices – not eating too much or too little – rather just the right amount for you. What does that look like for YOU?

Imagine your day is filled with positive energy – you’re happy, calm, and have a high sense of well-being and life satisfaction. What does that look like for YOU?

Last, but not least, imagine you’re at your ideal physical shape – you’re strong, lean, and have plenty of physical stamina to tackle whatever the day brings. What does that look like for YOU?

If you get stuck, here are some ideas to keep the pen flowing:

What does your DAY look like? What does it feel like? What’s your outlook on life like? What are your relationships like? How do these positively affect any other areas of your life? Keep writing and keep it fun and exciting!

I hope this exercise is valuable to you today. I’d love to hear any “ah-ha” moments that you may have had while going through it. Comment below and share them with me!

Next week, let’s continue the discussion and begin to move those numbers higher!