What state do you think has ranked highest for well-being multiple times?
If you guessed Hawaii, you would be correct. The data proves it. Hawaii regularly ranks high in the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. Hawaii is a paradise, for visitors and residents.
The Gallup Index measures various elements such as: Life Evaluation (“thriving” is the highest level here), Emotional Health (experiencing daily enjoyment, less daily worry or stress), Work Environment (trusting and open work place, able to use one’s strengths), Physical Health (degree of obesity), Healthy Behaviors (not smoking, exercising frequently, eating healthy foods), and Basic Access (access to health insurance, food, shelter, medicine, clean water, a safe place to exercise, etc.).
How does your state rank?
You may not be able to move to Hawaii to boost your well-being. Nor are you likely to impact the welfare of residents in your state all that much. What you can do, though, is take control of YOUR well-being.
Your well-being is your responsibility.
You have probably heard it said that you cannot pour from an empty pitcher (or a similar concept.) There is truth to that. If your values, health, or spirit are compromised, it will affect your relationships and work. Aiming to design your best possible life circumstances (which vary widely among individuals) will likely require you to make some changes (sometimes small, in small steps) so that you can align your values, health, and spirit.
One place to start (if you haven’t already) is to determine and formalize your personal purpose and values. Ask,
“What is my reason for being on this earth?”
“What values guide my head, heart, and hands?”
“What behaviors demonstrate that I am living my values daily?”
Once you have your values clear, find values-aligned friends and associates with which to spend your time. While you do not have control over every relationship you find it necessary to invest time in (i.e. some of the people in your life because of work, proximity, or blood relations), you CAN choose which relationships you build deep connections with because you lift them up and they lift you up. You can help each other live by your values.
Your spiritual viewpoint is often the base for your values. If a religious approach further serves this, invest time and energy in it. If a less structured approach does, invest time and energy in it. What matters is making your spiritual self strong and active.
Your health enables your physical self to align with your values and your spirit. Physical health is affected by so many things so a steady, incremental approach to improvement to a few things at a time can pave the way for a lasting change. Stretch your muscles. Increase your endurance. Take stairs rather than elevators. Walk at lunch instead of scrolling through social media. Cut back on unhealthy food items and find nourishing replacements. Make sleep a priority. Track your fitness efforts if that inspires you to do more. Inspire yourself with transformation stories like Arthur Boorman’s incredible transformation.
One final suggestion: insulate yourself from naysayers. These are the follks who love to point out our mistakes. Don’t take their comments to heart, and where you can, remove them from your life, or at least hold them at arm’s length.
Choose an aligned life where you can act on your values, live with a strong spirit, and enjoy physical health for many years. It all starts with you.
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