I have shared my love of the movie, What About Bob?, as a teaching tool in my Exercise Motivation and Adherence course. It is all about “baby steps”. The biggest change in our lives comes the smallest of incremental changes. If we want to be better tomorrow, we start with small changes today.
Our bad habits did not emerge overnight. The progressed over time—subtly and incrementally. Likewise, we are not going to get back in a track of good habits overnight. We have to begin with small sustainable changes.
I like to gather my habits under the well-centered fitness model—the Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Emotion, and Social dimensions of wellness. It takes a concerted effort to progress to well-centeredness. There are no immediate fixes to self.
Over the next few days, I want to consider each of these dimensions and the “baby steps” one (me, in particular) can take to become more “well-centered”.
Spiritual well-centeredness. The Spiritual dimension involves the consideration that there is something greater than self—that one is not at the center of the universe. It is the sense that we are all connected and that our actions have a rather powerful (albeit often unseen) effect on others—on the Universe. For some, the Spiritual dimension is God. I caution that it is not our vision of God. It is also not necessary to believe in God or gods or to follow any religion. Religion, in fact, can actually limit one’s Spiritual well-centeredness. Remember, Spiritual well-centeredness is greater than self. Thus, it is greater than our personal understanding of faith, spirit, salvation, eternity, etc.
A well-centered approach to the Spiritual dimension understands the we are in pursuit of an asymptote of understanding—that we are progressing to a greater more fuller understanding of what connects us. Personally, I believe in God. My understanding of God have evolved over many years. I would hope that I could say that my understanding of God has “improved over the many years”, but I could not make such a claim with any level of certainty. The reality is that the more I pursue an understanding of the Spiritual dimension the less confident I am in what I think I know. This is, however, evidence of Spiritual growth. This is the paradox of the Spiritual dimension. The more we learn and understand, the more apparent it becomes of how little we do know and understand. In such a paradox once can see that self grows as it sees itself progressively smaller.
There are many paths to greater Spiritual well-centeredness. I perceive the Spiritual and Physical dimensions as intertwined and interdependent and as the foundation for the other dimensions (Intellectual. Emotional, and Social). As one pursues the Physical, Intellectual, Emotional, and Social dimensions, one grows Spiritually, and vice versa. Meditation, music, art, nature, reading, relationships, etc. can all grow the Spirit, if rightly focused. Key to growing Spiritually is in direction one’s orientation away from self and to look for the subtle connections that unite us all.
Spiritual well-centeredness, while focused Universally, begins with self-focus (yet another paradox). It necessitates a growing level of self-reflection and exploration. Though overly simplistic, it is the effort to understand one’s “why”. As it is very personal, we will have to find our own explorative path. For me, daily journaling helps. As well, brief periods of reflection and prayer facilitate. One must be present in the moment.
If journaling works for you, then start immediate. Just let your mind go and record your thoughts. Begin with the simple habit of spending a few minutes writing goals, reflections, affirmation, etc. and let the habit grow from there.
Begin to take moments of pause during the day. Take moments to consider what is happening in your life and how that is affecting others. Continue to focus in on the “bigger picture”. Challenge yourself to ask the question: “Why?” Challenge yourself to be your best today and to be better tomorrow.
Carpe momento!