1500 - 2000 / Ralph Waldo Emerson / Visualization Board

Life Balance per Ralph Waldo Emerson and Life Balance Wheel

By Effluo | Published January 7, 2022 | 1 Comment

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, philosopher, and leader of the transcendentalist movement. In his work, The Essays, you can find some of the most insightful thoughts and wisdom to live by.  Overall, it is a guarantee that Emerson’s work will challenge your understanding of the world.

One of the topics covered in his writings was the need for balance.  

Nature hates monopolies and exceptions.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Extremes do not exist in nature, and you should avoid them in your life. Reading the following piece will help you understand why balance is important. It will help you identify the areas of your life you need to improve and focus on. Finally, it will bring you closer to achieving the balance in your life.

Why is balance important?

For everything you have missed, you have gained something else; and for everything you gain, you lose something.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

If you focus too much on one area of your life, you will be missing out on other areas of life by nature. For everything you gain, you lose something else.   

If you spend all of your time on leisure, you will miss out on moving ahead in your career. If you spend all of your time working, you will miss growing your relationships and enjoying leisure.  

Missing areas of life make for an incomplete wheel. This incompleteness will let itself be known in your overall well-being. The goal, therefore, is to achieve a balance between all different areas in your life. 

Purpose of Life Balance Wheel

The world looks like a multiplication table, or a mathematical equation, which, turn it how you will, balances itself. Take what figure you will, its exact value, nor more nor less, still returns to you.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

You get out of your life what you put into it.

• If you focus on building relationships, you will have great relationships.
• If you focus on building a career, you will have a fantastic career.

The purpose of the life balance wheel is to help you achieve this balance in your life and live your best life possible. 

How to Use Life Balance Wheel

The life balance wheel is divided into six areas of life.

• Family / Relationships
• Physical Health / Body
• Spiritual / Emotional
• Social / Environmental
• Intellectual / Hobbies 
• Financial / Professional

Think through each area and identify how satisfied you are with each section of your life. Each area has ten lines going through it—color in the number of lines that equal your satisfaction with the corresponding section.  

• 1 = not satisfied
• 10 = very satisfied

Review the completed wheel and decide what areas you need to work on to balance the wheel out.   

Set goals that will help you achieve that balance. In addition to goal setting, think through what habits you need to develop.  

In the completed sample, the Physical Health / Body section is low in satisfaction factor. This person can set a goal to improve their health by eating a balanced diet and exercising five days a week. They can then follow up by setting some habits related to the goal. These could be going for a walk after work, or exercising in the morning every weekday, etc. 

Whatever goals and habits you decide to create, put inspirational pictures on your vision board. 

Definitions of Life Balance Wheel Areas and Questions To Ask

Family / Relationships

Family relationships can be a touchy subject for many. You can either love your family or can’t get along with them. Family can support you at your most challenging time, or they can let you down when you need them the most. Improving your emotional intelligence can bring balance to this area of your life. Read more on tips for improving family relationships. 

A personal relationship with your loved one is the second aspect of relationships. Unlike family, your loved one is someone you chose to be with. This does not mean that working on this relationship will be easy and without any struggles.  This too requires evaluation and identifications of areas of improvement.

Questions to Ask

• Are you satisfied with relationships in your life?
• How often do you spend time with your loved ones?
• How easily can you connect with others?

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Physical Health / Body

Physical health is necessary to live a fulfilled life. Having good physical health includes regular visits with your doctor and dentist. It then proceeds to your lifestyle, including your diet and exercise plan. 

Having a healthy relationship with your body and a positive body image is just as critical as diet and exercise.

Questions to Ask

• How is your overall health?
• How is your diet?
• Any changes you would like to make to your diet?
• How often do you exercise or stay active?
• Any changes you would like to make to your exercise routine?
• How is your sleep, quality and quantity?
• Any changes you would like to make to your sleep routine?
• How is your self image?

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Spiritual / Emotional

Emotional health, also known as mental health, can lead to success in work, relationships, and health. It allows you to thrive under stressful situations and turn ‘lemons into lemonade.’

Spiritual Health brings balance between the physical and psychosocial aspects of your life. It allows you to look at the bigger picture and focus on something greater than you. 

Questions to Ask

• Can you effectively deal with your emotions, whether positive or negative?
• Are you good at accepting change?
• Are you effectively managing stress?
• Do you regularly contribute to society?
• How connected do you feel to your beliefs?
• Do you have a sense of belonging?

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Social / Environmental

Social health is your ability to form healthy relationships with others. How well you adapt to social situations and balance your social and personal time. 

Environmental health focuses on the relationship between you and the environment. This includes taking care of the environment and promoting well-being. 

Questions to Ask

• Are you engaged with other people in your community?
• Can you balance your social and personal time?
• Are you contributing to improving environment around you?
• Will you leave this world in a better state than you found it?

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Intellectual / Hobbies

Intellectual growth is the development of your mind and growing your knowledge. This includes taking classes, reading books, and continually learning something new.  

Hobbies are essential for a creative outlet. Creativity is critical for problem-solving, innovation, and just a happier life. If this is not enough, then according to Forbes, creativity is the skill of the future. 

Questions to Ask

• Do you have any hobbies or a creative outlet?
• Do you spend time growing your knowledge?

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Financial / Professional

Financial health is your ability to maintain personal finances. Your ability to balance a checkbook, invest in your retirement and live debt-free. 

Professional health is your career advancement. Determine if you are where you want to be with the current profession or career.  

Questions to Ask

• How satisfied are you in your career?
• Are you happy with your current financial status?

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