There are 5 areas of human life that we must give our time, energy and attention to on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. These five areas are: self, social, family, work, and spirituality. Let me explain about each area, then I’ll share a visual tool so you can see where you are expending energy.
Self
Taking care of yourself is important as it is time to recharge and disconnect from others. As you think about what this means to you, be aware that answers will vary depending on interests, hobbies and whether or not you enjoy being alone. What does this area mean to you?
Social
This is the time and energy you are putting into your friendships and the time spent engaging with others. Social interactions could include communication if your coworkers, group activities, or one on one friend time.
Family
Think about the time and energy are you spending with your family and your romantic partner. This includes actual time spent together and the mental space they take up.
Work
Whether this be your job, vocation, career or school, the work task of life is certainly an important area to give time and energy to. Sometimes we spend more than 40 hours per week on work because we are spending a lot of time thinking about work or worrying about assignments or things of that nature.
Spiritual
This includes spirituality, conscious living, and/or religious activities. It could mean going to church for some and it could mean meditation or yoga for others. How much time and mental energy are you spending here?
Keep in mind that some of these areas can overlap and that is ok. Here is a simple diagram for you to use to see how much time and energy you are spending in each life task. You only have 100% to give at any time so you have to divide your efforts to add up to 100%. Most people are not 20/20/20/20/20 and that is completely fine. Remember that life is usually a balancing act and that nothing is ever “perfect.” Take a moment to write down where you are….
Did you have any new insights into how you are living?
What changes would you like to make?
How might you go about making those changes? (We can only comfortably change about 5% at any given time so don’t be too hard on yourself!)
