The Daily MBA

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4 Ways to Optimize Your Personal Wellness To Your Career Advantage

Photo by Alexander Mils on Unsplash

While it may not seem obvious, your personal wellness has a sizable influence on your career success. The details of what brings wellness into a person’s life vary depending on a myriad of factors such as biology or preference but overall exists within six common dimensions – physical, social, spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and occupational.

The separate dimensions exist on a greater continuum that impacts one another. If you work on strengthening your physical wellness, then your spiritual or emotional wellness will also benefit. Each dimension of wellness works toward optimizing your occupational – or career – wellbeing.

Here are four ways to optimize your personal wellness to your career advantage and achieve success.

#1. Take Care of Your Body to Help it Perform

Taking care of your body through daily physical activity and healthy nutritional habits have a tremendous impact on your self-confidence and overall appearance. When you feel good you’ll look good, and your employers and colleagues will take notice.

What you can do:

An easy way to make physical wellness a part of your daily routine is to seek out job opportunities that also prioritize physical wellness. Trends show that employers are beginning to focus more on personalized wellness programs to maintain happy and healthy employees. Employers that value the benefits of regular exercise or provide nutrition education programs are those that will additionally appreciate your efforts to enhance your physical appearance and attitude within the office. If you struggle with additional physical symptoms of stress, such as hair loss or acne, you can utilize hair-loss medications and other targeted treatments to help you get the most out of your wellness program.

#2. Create a Monthly Social Calendar

Perhaps you’re not the spontaneous type; comfortably making last-minute plans and rushing from work to your social life on a whim. Even the most type-A planners can find a work-life balance, which can fight chronic stress brought on by the workplace. The Anxiety and Depression Association of America found that 72 percent of American employees experience daily stress that moderately impacts their life, with 56 percent feeling that chronic stress impacted their work performance the most. Beating chronic stress can lead to a more positive outlook on your career, feeling as though you’re working with a purpose rather than just for a paycheck. This will increase your productivity, motivating you to go above and beyond for promotions.

What you can do:

You don’t need to occupy every single moment you’re not at work with a social event. Even once a week will do your life some good. Schedule a coffee date with a friend you haven’t seen in a while or plan a weekend away with some closer loved ones. Making time for socialization with those who bring positivity into your life will help you feel rejuvenated when you go to perform at work. Beyond reconnecting with loved ones, look towards some additional self-care tips to maintain a work-life balance.

#3. Set a Date with Yourself (And Only You)

Achieving spiritual wellness refers to congruence across your morals, values, and actions. If you are behaving in a way that is out of line with your belief system, you will experience restlessness and a lack of fulfillment. In turn, this will negatively impact your career development as you as you’ll be less likely to find genuine value in the work you’re doing, decreasing your willingness to perform.

What you can do:

Find time to check in with yourself. Ask yourself questions such as:

  • What do I value?
  • Is the work I do foster these values?
  • How can I make my professional image more in line with my spirituality?
  • What sort of work-life balance do I want?

Write down the answers to these questions and check in with yourself every three months or so to make sure your path is still in alignment with your goals. Having strong spiritual wellness will help you confidently set realistic goals within your career and be able to move towards them.

#4. Feed Your Brain

It can be easy to feel stagnant in your career, especially when performing a role that you’ve done for years and have mastered. Satisfy your intellectual wellness by opening yourself up to new challenges and exploring new ideas that may counter occupational beliefs that you presently hold.

What you can do:

Actively read up on your industry in order to discover new ways to alter your practice, whether it be in the way you do your primary work, how you dress or communicate within your workplace.

Use your continuous learning as encouragement to seek out new opportunities within your career. Challenge yourself to involve yourself in opportunities that are beyond your current skill set in order to further develop the potential impact you make within the professional sphere.

BONUS: This Promotes a Healthy Mind

Emotional wellness is extremely important when leading a successful career. Emotional wellness goes beyond mental health, additionally including cognitive abilities that will help you thrive in the workplace.

What you can do:

Self-care doesn’t need to stop at home. Extend self-care practices into your workday to help manage stress where it counts most. When surrounded by anxiety-inducing situations or a high-pressure environment, going for a couple of walks a day or investing in noise-canceling headphones to block out distractions can do wonders for your mental state. If your cognitive abilities are thriving, your performance will too!

Also published on Medium.

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