Wellbeing & Meditation
ONE of the most interesting things to understand about health and wellbeing is the critical importance of good relationships and social connection to your health and happiness.
Life is all about relationships. When relationships are going well, we feel good about life and ourselves. We feel connected and the rest of our life naturally flows from that sense of connectivity and belonging.
When key relationships are not going well, that affects us mind, body and spirit. Negative and stressful thoughts if played repeatedly in your mind cause problems with your mental and even physical health. Lack of or weak connection with others brings loneliness which is a major factor in modern disease and life expectancy.
When relationships are not going the way we want them to, at times, we feel angry, hurt, guilty, worried, lonely, lost, frustrated, sad or mis-understood, abused, mis-used or confused or something in between.
We all relate with people in different areas of our lives – at home, at work and socially. We also have a relationship with ourselves which is the foundation of all other relationships.
In life, if you want to change your circumstances you have to change yourself. Similarly If you want to improve or change your relationships, you have to change yourself, where you sit in those relationships and how and how much you connect with and speak to people.
Having good people to share the good and bad times with is one of the biggest riches of life. Having people around you that you can count on and that will help you solve your problems takes investment. Sometimes, we can miss the best of people by focusing on small faults that we all have. We lose energy, friendships and damage our health when we hold grudges and don’t forgive.
The health of the body is always better when we think positively and treat others with respect and kindness.
Stressful thoughts about relationships bring stress in the body and mind which causes disease and a range of lifestyle problems related to self-esteem and filling vacuums.
So here are 4 things you can you do to have strong relationships and great health:
1. Invest in having happy relationships with people. The Harvard study on happiness and health, the longest study of its type showed that the people who had the best health in the 80s were the people who had the greatest happiness in their relationships when they were in their 50s
2. Reflect on your life relationships. If there are problems, commit to working through them so your key relationships are as harmonious and happy as possible.
3. Spend maximum time with people that you bring the best out in and that bring the best out in you. This is true in life and business. “My model for business is The Beatles. They were four guys who kept each other’s kind of negative tendencies in check. They balanced each other and the total was greater than the sum of the parts. That’s how I see business: Great things in business are never done by one person, they’re done by a team of people.” This strategy really worked for Steve Job who said this and the Beatles. If you try it, it will also work for you.
4. Help others and invest in people and relationships. If you want others to help you, you have to help them.
This week, reflect on your relationships and how you can make them happier for all. This will be the best investment you can make in your health and happiness. Enjoy