Anyone in business can tell you that you have to stay on top of everything. If you take your eye off the ball of your cash flow or your inventory, things can get out of hand pretty quickly. Stop paying attention to the people that you work with or the customers that you serve, and the balance sheet of a profitable enterprise can swiftly head from the accountant approved color of black to the “How am I going to pay my creditors?” color of red. It is the same with the business of our lives. If we aren’t paying attention to how things are going, we may find that our physical, mental/emotional and spiritual well-being is heading toward the dreaded state of bankruptcy. One of the strange things about the educational system that most of us have grown up in is that we spend years learning about all kinds of “stuff” but spend little time learning about how to live in a way that leads to a personal sense of balance and satisfaction. Many people are still seeking to embrace the almighty God: Money. When we all know — at least intellectually —that money alone won’t bring happiness. We know this. If you are already financially wealthy you know this from personal experience. If you haven’t yet achieved financial victory, you certainly know materially successful people that aren’t happy. Yet in our quest for money we may let our health, our relationships and our general sense of well-being go down the tubes. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with money. I wouldn’t mind having a bit more of it myself. The real issue is happiness. How can we live in a way that leads to a truly fulfilling life? Can financial success be an important part of building a happy life? Yes, absolutely. But we need to cultivate the qualities of personal success while we build our financial success. Otherwise we may arrive at the penthouse suite out of breath, out of family and out of the joyful zest for life that we had when we started. So let’s talk about what we can do to insure that we arrive at the pinnacle of our life in a state of body, mind and spirit that allows us to enjoy it. Physical Well-Being It doesn’t matter how bad things look when you stand on the scale or look in the mirror, you can improve the situation. The truth that we don’t really want to hear is that if we aren’t fit we need to eat less and exercise more. It is that simple. The way to face the situation if things look dire in this area is to take small steps, one at a time, and don’t stop moving forward until you come to a mutually beneficial agreement with your body. If you can do it on your own: great. If you want to join a gym, fine. Take up a sport or just do exercises. You can walk, run or ride a bike. It doesn’t really matter. Tune in to your own preferences and follow them. You will find that if you actually enjoy exercising it will hasten positive physical results and provide mental benefits as well. There is veritable buffet (couldn’t resist!) of good information available about eating right. So I am not going to go into this much. If you are one of those people who think eating right tastes bad, you are wrong. One of the secret benefits about eating less is that food tastes better. You might not be eating as much, but you will really enjoy what you eat! Let me caution you against the excessive use of quick fixes like plastic surgery, diet pills and crash diets. These attempts at self-improvement are like being dropped at the top of a mountain by a helicopter and claiming you climbed the mountain. The picture of you on the mountain looks the same as the one of a person who actually climbed step by step up the mountain, but it doesn’t feel the same. False successes are hollow - they don’t stand the test of time. I am not saying there is no place for these aids at times, but as a general rule they are to be avoided. Being fit isn’t really about looking good - even though that is a byproduct. It is about self-transformation. The positive energy that you feel from physical improvement will carry over into your mental view of life. Mental and Emotional Well-Being We have all heard about how important a positive view of life is. I want to go past talking about it and share with you an idea about how to experience it if you aren’t already, and how to deepen your sense of well-being if you already feel pretty good. This is a technique that you can use to encourage mental and emotional fitness just the way you exercise the body for physical fitness. Sound intriguing? We are constantly bombarded with sensory impressions each day. Add to that the countless thoughts and emotions that roam through our minds and it is a wonder that we can function at all. Most people need what they call a period of “attitude adjustment” at the end of the day. Television and “Happy Hour” are common escapes for many. When this doesn’t work some people turn to drugs and excessive use of alcohol. The truth is that these types of solutions don’t work. Instead of adding to our stimulation or dulling our senses we need to withdraw from the senses altogether. When we sleep we withdraw our attention from the senses. This is helpful, but in sleep we go into the subconscious. We want to go into what is called a superconscious state. The way to do this is to intensely focus our attention within ourselves rather than outwardly through the senses. In order to do this we need to learn how to meditate. Meditation techniques are designed to help us withdraw from restlessness and enter into a calm state of dynamic peace and joy. This might sound like hocus pocus to some, but this subject has been thoroughly tested by western medicine with double blind studies. Meditation does actually work. Try this. Sit up straight in a chair, resting your hands in your lap. Don’t lean back. Close your eyes and take a few slow deep breaths. Mentally take in peace with each inhalation and release mental and physical tension as you exhale. After a few deep breaths, give up control of the breath. Let your breath come in and go out of its own accord. As it comes in mentally say, “I am.” And as it goes out mentally say, “Peace.” Remember not to control the breath. Just watch it. Try to sit absolutely still and concentrate deeply on watching the breath go in and out. Try this for five minutes or longer if you can. Just like any new exercise, it takes some practice to get dramatic results. But most people will experience a feeling of relaxation and a calming of the mind in just a few minutes of focused practice. Try this morning and evening for 15 to 20 minutes and it will improve your life in ways that you might never have expected. Spiritual Well-Being If you have a dynamic spiritual life then you know how fulfilling and life balancing this is. For those who have never explored this part of life or have rejected the possibilities because of being turned off by organized religions, let me encourage you to rethink your opinion on the subject. Keep in mind, it isn’t necessary to join a religion to be spiritual. If you were told that the study of economics could be of great help in advancing your business career you wouldn’t hesitate to look into it. But as soon as people start talking about spiritual ideas many practical people get the heebeegeebees. There is nothing more practical than exploring to the fullest your own personal connection with God, Life, Nature or whatever else you want to call it. A sincere exploration of this area of life will lead you to a sense of life purpose and joyful enthusiasm that simply can not be found through any other channel. And don’t take my word for it! Check it out for yourself. It has been my observation that most people actually know what they need to do to improve their lives. The inner compass of intuition often tells us which way we need to go. Start listening to that inner voice (No not the spooky voice!) and it will guide you in amazing ways. Remember: You have to want to improve your life. It won’t happen by accident. Making conscious choices is just as essential in life as it is in business. You may get a lucky tip and make some easy money in the stock market (legally I hope!) but you can’t expect that as a basis for everyday fiscal success. You have to invest your caring and determination if you want solid future improvement in any part of life. Copyright 2008 Lawrence Girard