Reading Your Own Label

Do you feel like there isn’t enough time? Like there’s always something to do? It seems like everyone is busy; there’s always something you should or could do. It’s hard to make time for things that are really important but can get lost in the shuffle, like checking in with yourself. Doing a little self-reflection, some self-assessment. I like to think of it as reading your own label…

Alright, this metaphor might be a bit of a stretch. But my first piece of advice in improving your nutrition and eating habits is to read labels, specifically the ingredients. Having an awareness of what you’re putting in your body takes hold and the more you learn the more likely you are to eat better (most days…don’t judge me when you get to the gummy bear part).

And my first piece of advice in making a change- losing weight, getting healthier, committing to exercise, changing careers, feeling happier, whatever- is taking a good look at where you’re at in life now. Having this knowledge, this awareness puts you in a position to move forward.

So today I’m asking you to think about reading your own label. First, the parts of your life that add up to your whole life. Second, the characteristics that make you who you are.

I’m thinking most of us probably don’t think about either of these things at all. So I’m sharing two ways you can do a little bit of both, a little self-assessment…

The Wheel of Life

“The Wheel of Life” by Zig Ziglar is a great starting point. It’s simply a circle cut up into pieces and labeled with different areas of your life. You can use it to reflect on your life and think about where you’re feeling fulfilled/happy and where you might feel lacking/unfulfilled, based on these 7 areas.

I think it’s a great way to get thinking about something you might not ordinarily think about. When was the last time you really considered the role of spirituality in your life?

Here are the areas…mental, spiritual, physical, family, financial, personal, career. (You can check out the website here. Zig Ziglar has passed away but his son is carrying on his work.)

How is this useful?

♦It helps you see what needs more attention in your life.

♦It’s a chance for self-reflection, which we could all probably use a little more of.

You could also break down those areas even further or add sub-areas. For example, personal is a little vague. You might want to think about friendships somewhere. Fun. Creativity. How fulfilled are you in those areas?

Don’t use this as an opportunity to bash yourself or see where you’re lacking. No one has a perfect wheel all the time! There will be times when one area needs more of your focus and attention. Some areas will have to take a backseat. What we’re looking to do is…

♥feel more fulfilled without pressure, feel happier, find places we might want to grow.

Mostly this is an act of self-love. Give yourself time. Know where you feel like something is missing, or where you might long for something more.

Embrace the fact that you can love your life and want more. At the same time.

When I first used the wheel, I glossed over spirituality, giving myself higher scores than I deserved. “I believe in God” and “I received the sacraments” and “I believe in spirits” does not a spiritual guru make. To be honest, I also found the whole “spirituality” thing a little overrated and a little boring…Spirituality? Snooze…So I won’t bore you with my awakening, but it came and it has me paying a little more attention to that part of the wheel.

Ingredient List

Another way you can read your own label is to think about some of your characteristics and how they would appear on your ingredient list.

You know how they list the ingredients on food labels in order of how much is in the product? So the first ingredient in gummy bears is glucose syrup. (I know this because the empty bag of them is right on top of the garbage right now after I ate 300 of them last night.)

What would your first ingredient be right now? Mine would probably be glucose syrup. Followed by inspiration. Because I just meditated…in an hour it will probably be glucose syrup followed by anxiety.

So this might be silly but use it as a chance to really think about yourself…beyond this moment what would your list look like? Is anxiety higher on the list than you’d like? There are weeks “crabby” nears the top of my list for no apparent reason. But thinking about my label might make me…

1- aware that I’ve been kind of miserable

2- do something about it

3- get to the bottom of why I’ve been crabby and maybe help me work on that.

If “skeptical” or “cynical” is near the top of your list (I’m surprised you’re still reading this…) maybe you can try to balance it out with some POSITIVITY or optimism.

Is “anxiety” higher than you’d like? Let this be your chance to do something about it. Call someone, vent, do something relaxing, exercise, meditate.

Of course, our list is shifting all the time, but over the course of a typical week, there are some things that will be higher and some will be lower. Some are personality traits and we might just need to learn to love them. Others are more mood-related or things that can be detrimental- those are the ones we can work on.

For example, on my list- patience is a positive one that’s high on my list most days and anxiety is a negative one that’s high on my list most days.  Knowing that I’m prone to anxiety, I can do things each day to lessen it.

 

But again, use this for awareness, a chance for growth, and not as an excuse to pick yourself apart or see just the bad.

Has anyone ever asked you what’s wrong and you didn’t realize you had been walking around looking sad or angry? And then you realize you have been in a crappy mood? But you’re not even sure why? Doing a little self-check can help you…You might even do a little check-in each day.

A daily check-in is a good place to start…

I’m not saying we need to be hyper self-aware all the time, walking around with even wheels of life and cheerful dispositions. But paying attention to these things can help us feel happier. It can help us make changes that will be good for us in the long run. Mindset is right up there with reading labels on my advice list, and it’s hard to get to a more positive mindset if we’re not even sure what’s happening up there.

This week “tired” would be very high on my list. And my wheel of life is all out of whack…(My candy wheel, however, is perfectly balanced between “chocolate” and “fruity” candy cravings.) By 3:00 most days all I want to do is sit on the couch and watch something stupid. Has this been the longest week ever?? But that’s all ok…as long as I’m not rolling through life like this all the time. And as long as I’m checking in on myself…

How’s your wheel? What’s your first ingredient right now? I’d love to hear from you! You can comment here, email me (mary@stayathomefit.com), or on Facebook or Instagram. (My wheel heavily favors Facebook, but I’m working on that Instagram part…)

Did you like this post? Share it on Facebook or Pinterest!