The Journey to Meaning and Joy: How to Start Prioritizing Your Wellness
9 Jan 2025
In the fast-paced world, it is sometimes simple to forget about priorities, which, as it seems, are your healthy body and mind. Deadlines, responsibilities, and other distractions do not leave much time for anything, much less for the important task of taking care of oneself. However, the journey to meaning and joy starts with a reprieve—the attempt to engage and cultivate good practices for the human mind, body, and spirit.
In case you are asking yourself, ‘How do I begin?’ then this blog will lead you on the exact steps on how to start prioritising your wellness and thus find meaning in Divine Living.
The Importance of Wellness
Wellness is a broader concept that goes far beyond the physical realm of a human being. It comprises psychological, social, and religious health. When you choose to focus your efforts on getting well physically, emotionally, and mentally, you invest in the strength that helps you overcome the obstacles you are going to encounter. Furthermore, the wellness approach ensures that one has a worthwhile life, rich interpersonal relationships, and an appreciation of one’s existence.
In today’s society, people have learnt that busyness is a key to success and hence are hooked to it. Sadly, this might mean minimal time for taking care of oneself or thinking about oneself. When people fail to practice health-enhancing behaviors, they may become exhausted, depressed, isolated, and have no job satisfaction. It, then, means that this is not just about avoiding these negative aspects; it is more about flourishing in all the areas of your life.
However, why is it that individuals often have difficulty with the idea of investing in health?
One of the main reasons is that people tend to think that wellness means change, and these changes are drastic. That is why small and steady changes are much more effective in bringing radical transformations in a society. Now let’s see how to start prioritising your wellness by taking small steps in the journey to meaning and joy.
Step 1: What Wellness Means to You
Wellness is something that is very individualistic in nature. First of all, one should think about his or her definition of wellness. Ask yourself:
Which aspects of my life would need realignment?
When am I happiest, or most fully alive?
What are some of my favourite leisure activities?
It will enable you to have a clear outlook on which areas you need to give more effort to. From getting in better shape to strengthening friendships or even finding time for prayers, one must first get clarity. This stream of self-introspection not only provides a clear understanding of one’s goals but also enhances the determination to achieve them amidst the beautiful journey to meaning and joy.
Step 2: Set Meaningful Goals
When you have figured out what is important to you for wellness, then step two is to set reasonable objectives. For instance:
Physical Wellness: One is advised to take at least half an hour of exercise five times in a week.
Mental Wellness: Establish the daily tradition of journaling or spending 10-15 minutes of one’s time on a mindfulness exercise.
Emotional Wellness: Watch a movie or attend a concert, engage in family time, or any type of gratitude exercise.
Learn how to set SMART goals. These goals will help you to provide a guideline of the kind of journey you want to embark on when thinking about how to start prioritising your wellness.
Step 3: Cultivate Healthy Habits
Prioritise Sleep
It is recommended that you should sleep for approximately 7-9 hours per day. It’s crucial to get to bed at the right time and to avoid any source of light in the bedroom to sleep peacefully through the whole night.
Nourish Your Body
Take natural foods that contain low nutrient and calorie content, such as fruits, vegetables, lean meat, and fish. Carry a water bottle instead of the sugary soda and try to cut down on things high in sugars or processed foods. Cooking at home is preferable to taking ready-made foods since one has to ensure that what one is taking is healthy.
Move Regularly
Do things you feel are healthy; this can be a form of exercise, such as yoga or walking. Goal: 150 mins of moderate physical activity each week, including at least part of strength training.
Step 4: Establish a Positive Atmosphere
The environment is a known influential factor in attitudes and behaviours. Surround yourself with positivity by:
Deep cleaning to free your home from the unnecessary items that cause clutter and contribute to tension.
Establishing a network of healthy friends and loved ones to positively motivate and support the well-being process.
Staying away from things that are negative, including reviewing images or statuses on social media sites or being surrounded by negative individuals.
Well, it is always easier to stick to the goals of wellness if the environment supports such a move in your journey of how to start prioritising your wellness. For instance, if you have a goal of learning how to lose weight, ensure that your kitchen contains healthy foods and not processed foods. In the same way, become a member of relevant groups or clubs that interest you, e.g., fitness classes, book clubs, among others.
Step 5: Practice Mindfulness
Mindfulness is a technique of Transformational Coaching where paying attention and being aware of the present remains the key aspect. Practicing mindfulness can help you manage stress and other health-related issues and lead to healthier and happier individuals. These practices include:
Meditation: Try meditation for 5-10 minutes a day. When starting meditation, applications like Headspace or Calm can help to perform this process.
Gratitude Journaling: Daily say or write down three things that one is grateful for in life. It does this by, over the years, rewiring the brain to always have a positive mindset towards life.
Mindfulness does not have to be tied down to the formal practices. Though, in order to precisely understand how to start prioritising your wellness, it is possible to sometimes pay attention to the beautiful sunset for a few minutes or listen to your favourite song mindfully.
Final Thoughts
Beginning to focus on your well-being is one of the most significant steps. It’s not about making ourselves better physically but about building a vital and happy life in the journey to meaning and joy. These are some of the steps that one may find insignificant, but the compound effect makes it big. As a result, one is able to create a successful plan of personal well-being, enjoying all aspects of life, free from harm and in harmony both with oneself and with the world.
If you wish to try something more intensive and engaging to realign yourself while understanding the conceptual depth of how to start prioritising your wellness, check out Transformative Wellness Retreats by Gillian McMichael that aim to help you regain happiness.
Get started and witness some of the changes you never expected to happen in your life. This is the best time to Reclaim Control Of Your Health.