There are multiple layers to our life.
Work time. Family time. Volunteer time.
Social time.
Alone time.
I’ve been thinking about the 8 dimensions of wellbeing and realizing something that bothers me.
There is a full dimension for “occupation”.
And, when you think about it, that layer touches all 8 dimensions of wellbeing.
Occupational stress impacts our physical wellbeing (stress), social wellbeing (coworkers), emotional wellbeing (all the feelings), and all the other dimensions.
Yet there is no category on the wheel for other parts of our life… specifically family is missing.
Like our occupation, our family, both near and extended, impacts all the other categories.
Each year when I go through the wheel, I am cramming all relationships into “social”.
Somehow, it seems odd that everything from our closest family to coworkers and neighbors are all grouped together into one category.
I’m wondering if there should be a 9th category.
Or, if something else should be grouped together to make room for a family category.
Maybe instead of social it could be called relationships.
That would at least feel deeper and more intentional.
Social is feeling a bit too much like a cocktail party.
Lacking the complexity of all the relationships in our life.
Maybe there is something to the work and life wheels.
We could assess how our work life is doing in the other 7 dimensions.
Then, assess how our home life is doing in the other 7 dimensions.
What might happen then?
Do new insights emerge?
This is something I want to start to explore.