Intellectual Wellness is the act of maintaining the process of acquiring knowledge, the ability to process it, solve problems, and make decisions to manage daily life. It sounds complicated, and it can be. Maintaining something is where the work is. We can all state we have days where our Intellectual Wellness is operating at optimal levels. If we had to state, we do it consistently, we will be a lot quieter. We seem to fall short here. We are juggling life’s other tasks. The struggle is understandable, but we cannot allow ourselves to use that as an excuse to let this side of wellness continue to fall short.
How can we promote maintaining the acquisition of knowledge and processing it? It can be difficult because most of our lives consist of monotony. We have a skill that we get paid to do. We do it 40-50 hours or more a week. We then get free time but want to do what we want to do for a change, and it doesn’t usually involve learning something new. It’s something else in which we are already good. What should we do in this situation? We must find a way to expand our expertise at work. It can be something slightly related to what we do. This way, we will sell ourselves on sticking with it. At work, we need to find something new that interests us. It may take some time, but it will be worth it. We will be giving ourselves the opportunity to find something else that makes us happy. This new thing will also make us smarter, boosting our intellectual wellness. We also will enable the possibility of our newfound professional and personal skills to introduce us to even more.
How about solving problems and making decisions to manage daily life? We make decisions all day. We may no longer be conscious of them, but they are made. The first step is becoming more aware of the problems and decisions we encounter. This awareness allows us to determine just how well we are addressing the problems or issues. This step will promote self-awareness. It will be tough for most of us because it exposes all the issues we must address. Yes, in addition to the ones in which we are already aware. This wellness journey isn’t all marshmallows and rainbows. Bliss comes after work. We will have to address the self-inflicted wounds and the decisions to procrastinate. The choice to stand still when it was clear, action was needed. The daily lack of effort to get closer to the person we desire to be doesn’t help either. It hurts but the day we choose to do this can be the last day it does.
In closing, Intellectual wellness is a habit. Like any other habit, it takes time to build. Once it becomes a habit, this side of wellness will be a long-standing asset. We’ll love learning new things. We’ll begin to treat issues as a challenge, not a blocker. We’ll look at the situation as an opportunity to get better. We will be in a mode of constant improvement. This method is how our favorite applications, websites, and pieces of technology stay that way. Intellectual wellness allows us to become a favorite to ourselves. We may want to choose to dedicate time to becoming intellectually well. The positives make it hard to look the other way. Yes, there are six sides that are important, but if this seems to be the one you need first, make it happen.
Food for thought. You do the dishes!
