Every day, we read stories or have conversations about well-being, health, personal safety, and self-care. Most of these stories and conversations focus on the pandemic or our working conditions, but as we all know the conversations go deeper than that. We have a unique opportunity to talk about well-being or being well in a much more holistic way. We have an opportunity to leverage this societal awareness into action for ourselves, our workplaces, and our communities.
I personally struggle with defining what it means to “be well” in my life. Initially, I think of losing weight or exercising more or getting more sleep. But, in my coaching discussions with clients these days, I have introduced a more holistic view of being well or defining our own well-being. I like the image of a circle and of all the parts that contribute to a sense of well-being. And as we know, very often these elements are not in balance as we may pay more attention to one or two rather than several at any given time.
I also like that these elements apply to organizational and community health as much as individual health. In fact, some of my most provocative discussions with leaders these days is how their culture supports – or does not – support these elements.