August was a good month where trying to achieve more balance in my life was concerned. Some areas could still do with some improvement, but other areas were nicely filled with relevant activities. Time to post my September goals.
As I've explained before, my monthly balanced life goals are similar to the spokes of a wheel, with the length of each spoke representing my satisfaction in that area of my life, from 1 to 10, with 1 being most dissatisfied and 10 being most satisfied. Ideally, all the spokes are of equal length and the wheel will roll along smoothly. If the spokes are of unequal lengths, then, the resulting wheel will be lop-sided and wobbly. My ratings for each segment are shown within the parentheses, with the beginning of the month ratings in black.
As I've explained before, my monthly balanced life goals are similar to the spokes of a wheel, with the length of each spoke representing my satisfaction in that area of my life, from 1 to 10, with 1 being most dissatisfied and 10 being most satisfied. Ideally, all the spokes are of equal length and the wheel will roll along smoothly. If the spokes are of unequal lengths, then, the resulting wheel will be lop-sided and wobbly. My ratings for each segment are shown within the parentheses, with the beginning of the month ratings in black.
Spiritual: (10): The goal is to live a spiritually meaningful life:
- Continue with daily prayers and gratitude; focus on being positive and joyful
- Continue to practice meditation at home and at the temple
- Continue to cultivate non-attachment to material things by donating/decluttering more
- Participate in prayer ceremonies at the temple
- Attend the monthly rosary prayer gathering
House (9): The goal is a home that is pleasant, comfortable, and welcoming:
- Clean - do one deep cleaning task per week - focus on the kitchen
- Organize - continue to find a place for everything and keep everything in its place
- Well maintained - continue to implement the cleaning schedule
- Decluttered - find 30 items to declutter
Garden (8): The goal is a garden that is productive, yet drought tolerant:
- Maintain (water 2-3 times per week, depending on the temperature; weed)- Get ready for fall planting
Daughter (10): The goal is to continue to have a close relationship with her:
- Daily texts, phone calls, and video chatting, etc.
- Daily texts, phone calls, and video chatting, etc.
- Enjoy her planned visit in September (for her friend's bachelorette party)
Family & Friends (10): The goal is to have a connection with family members and friends:
Family & Friends (10): The goal is to have a connection with family members and friends:
- Regular phone calls and emails
- Will be seeing several members of the family and friends at this month's prayer gathering
- Will be seeing several members of the family and friends at this month's prayer gathering
Community (10): The goal is to be involved in my community:
- Continue to participate in the blogging community
- Participate in the Summer Photo Scavenger Hunt
- Weekly phone calls with neighbor T
- Continue to participate in the online group of which I am a member
Finances (10): The goal is financial security:
- Participate in the Summer Photo Scavenger Hunt
- Weekly phone calls with neighbor T
- Continue to participate in the online group of which I am a member
Finances (10): The goal is financial security:
- Continue budgeting and spending mindfully, with purpose.
Health & Well Being (9): The goal is good health:
- Attend the medical appointments scheduled for this month (2 doctor's appointments and 1 lab test, so far)
- Continue to work on the following life style changes:
Health & Well Being (9): The goal is good health:
- Attend the medical appointments scheduled for this month (2 doctor's appointments and 1 lab test, so far)
- Continue to work on the following life style changes:
- better diet - eat more vegetables, less carbs; keep a food diary
- better hydration - drink 8 x 8oz glasses of water, daily
- better sleep habits - get 6-7 hours of sleep; actively try to go to bed before midnight!
- more exercise - get back on a walking schedule
- better hydration - drink 8 x 8oz glasses of water, daily
- better sleep habits - get 6-7 hours of sleep; actively try to go to bed before midnight!
- more exercise - get back on a walking schedule
- Get back down to a healthier weight through diet and exercise
Time Management (8): The goal is to spend my time in a mindful manner:
- Keep to a more regular schedule
- Procrastinate less
Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Me-Time (10): The goal is to relax doing something I enjoy doing for the pleasure of it.
Time Management (8): The goal is to spend my time in a mindful manner:
- Keep to a more regular schedule
- Procrastinate less
Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Me-Time (10): The goal is to relax doing something I enjoy doing for the pleasure of it.
- Engage in daily joyful activities
- Go on at least a couple of outings
Those are my goals for a more balanced life in September. Are you making any goals for September?
- Go on at least a couple of outings
Those are my goals for a more balanced life in September. Are you making any goals for September?
Great goals! I need to get back on track now that I'm back!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sharon. Looking forward to reading about your September goals.
DeleteI’ve done the wheel/spoke exercise before, with each one being an area of life. It makes more sense now that I’m older. I think I’d get overwhelmed with more than one goal in each category right now.
ReplyDeleteStart out small, with a few areas. I have one main goal per area, with what I plan to do to achieve that goal listed under each goal.
DeleteI only took a couple of hours out. We’ll see if I remember this on October 1st.
DeleteI took a look at what you wrote down, Akasha. You made a good start. I will comment on it once I've had my morning cup of tea and woken up a bit more! But, what I do is I review my goals frequently and try to touch on each area at least once a week. I hope you'll find this whole exercise helpful and will remember it in October. :)
DeleteYour lists are an inspiraation to me. I hope I can have half of that as an aspiration
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lyssa. Start out small - have fewer areas, have just one or two tasks for each area to begin with. I've been doing this for many years and it becomes easier as you go, I think.
DeleteYour month was great Bless!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Anne. Yes, it was, wasn't it? I managed to have a well balanced month, overall. Yes, there were some areas that could have been better, but, that just gives me something to strive for. :)
DeleteYou're doing so well - every category is an 8 or higher, which is excellent. Good luck for achieving your goals in September x
ReplyDeleteThank you, Eileen. :) It wasn't that long ago that I was happy that nothing was below a 5! :D I hope I am not artificially inflating my numbers, but, I am trying to be more positive and give myself credit for what I did rather than focus on what I didn't. I think the numbers reflect that.
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