The last two days we have covered occupational and financial wellbeing.
Today, our focus shifts to intellectual – bridging across our professional and personal lives.
Occupational wellbeing is focused on the job(s) we do to make an income.
Our intellectual wellbeing is our creativity and pushing our mind in new directions.
We may bring those elements into our work, but we also share them in the rest of our lives.
Last year, we introduced four elements – curiosity, inspiration, hobbies, and connection.
With another year of thinking, I would shift a few things.
I would merge “curiosity” with “growth” from occupational wellbeing.
Change the title of “stimulating input” to “inspiration”.
Add self-awareness – I think our intellectual wellbeing processes how we approach the world.
And move connection to social.
Here’s my new list.
Dimensions of Intellectual Wellbeing
Curiosity: The desire to pursue and learn new things – take courses, learn lessons, and grow.
Inspiration: The stimulating input needed to trigger creativity.
Hobbies: Activities that stimulate our mind and get us thinking.
Self-Awareness: Doing the inner work to better understand how we approach the world. Knowing our unique differences enables us to consider strategies to leverage what’s working and find new approaches to the ones that aren’t.
2024 Reflection Questions
As you reflect on 2024, here are some questions to consider:
- Three words that represent my intellectual wellbeing in 2024 are:
- What are the most significant things I learned this year?
- How did I bring curiosity and creativity into my work?
- What hobbies did I enjoy? Did I add new ones or foster the ones I’ve had?
- Did I proactively seek out inspiration for my life?
- What self-awareness or inner work did I take on this year?