What is wellbeing?

What is Wellbeing?

It's something we think we know, if you were asked you would think it obvious, but have you ever tried to really define it? To unpack how it show's up (or doesn't!) in your life? What you actually need to build your wellbeing?

It might surprise you to know that first of all, wellbeing isn't a singular thing.

There are actually 8 different pillars of wellbeing.

The way I think of it is like this - imagine a house with a roof. Instead of walls it is held up by 8 different pillars. One in each corner, and one in the middle of each side. The roof is your overall wellbeing - how you feel, how well you are functioning. The 8 pillars are the things that get you to that state.

Now as you can imagine, you can remove a few pillars and the roof will stay up, but it's not quite as strong and stable. If there is a sudden increase in pressure/demands, it is going to start to struggle and may eventually collapse. Similarly, if you remove too many pillars, it's going to hit the ground pretty fast. Once that roof is on the floor it becomes a mammoth job to get it back up again.

The same is true for us.

Most of us are coasting along with a few pillars in place, and we only notice the cracks when we get a sudden increase in stress / demands - such as a promotion, redundancy, marriage, divorce, health challenges, money worries, or an increase in expectations on us at work or home.

At this point, without that preventative self-care in our pillars, we are at risk of a roof collapse aka: burnout, mental ill-health, stress, distress.

So what are the wellbeing pillars?

🫀Physical

The things you do to help you take care of your body, boost your energy levels, and feel comfortable in your own skin.

🧠Mental

The things you do to stimulate your mind, improve your brain functionality, and indulge your sense of curiosity about the world.

💓Emotional

The things you do to help you cope with your feelings, improve self-acceptance, and allow yourself to experience a range of emotions.

🌍Environmental

The things you do to create an environment you can thrive in. Where do you spend your time? What do you need there to thrive?

🧑🏻‍🤝‍🧑🏽Social

The things you do to foster connection with others, feeling loved and less alone.

💰Financial

The things you do to have a healthy relationship with money and have less stress about money. This could also include working with money blocks.

😁Joyful

The things you do to play and have fun in your life. What brings your inner child out?

🎯Vocational

The things you do to feed a sense of purpose and meaning in your life. What makes you feel connected and part of something bigger? What makes you feel fulfilled in your daily activities?

How do the different parts of wellbeing fit together?

Some pillars come easily to us. You might be great at financial self-care. You work a lot and save a lot of money. You spend when it is needed to support your wellbeing.

Perhaps you are great at your vocational pillar. You have work that fills a purpose for you. It is something you are passionate about doing well and you give a lot of time to it.

But just like with a building, It's important to note that we need our pillars to be balanced. We don't want one giant pillar and the rest being undersized. That's just as unstable for our roof.

What can I do to support my wellbeing?

In order to keep that roof on we need to survey our pillars regularly. We take preventative action by strategically strengthening pillars that need it. We redistribute time and energy if we are spending it disproportionately,

To do this survey for yourself, you should make some clear time to focus and be honest with yourself. There are two ways we can help - the first is to download our free self-care wheel workbook.

This is a 7-page book that explains the pillars, and takes you through a reflection and evaluation exercise, before helping you to set a goal to start to take action on your self-care for wellbeing.

Alternatively, if you want some more support, as well as to give yourself dedicated time just for you, to think through and explore your well-being needs, check out our coaching options on our work with us page.