Looking after the most important tool of all

We all know the importance of maintaining our tools.   Sharpening the edge of an axe means it will cut through wood so much better and with less effort from us.  Servicing the car means it will run more smoothly, use less petrol and break down far less often.  Clearing the cache on the computer and giving it great virus protection keeps it doing what you need, and adding extra software gives you even more choices as to what you can do.

We also know that if we neglect our tools we will pay for it.  Things will start to break down, costing us a lot in stress, headaches, repairs, and eventually in replacement.

Despite knowing this, many of us neglect to pay attention to our most important tool of all.  Ourselves.  Instead we run around all day at a million miles an hour, putting off the fun stuff because we don’t have time for it.  We eat chocolate and ice cream and spend most of the day sitting at work, before heading home and sitting down there too.  We get stressed, we get lonely, we feel dissatisfied and we hate our jobs, yet we don’t do anything about it.  And yet we expect ourselves to keep running at full capacity, not even considering the fact that what we’re doing is not sustainable, and sooner or later if we don’t make some changes we’re going to start breaking down.  And unlike our tools, replacement is not a possibility. 

So how do we keep ourselves well?  How do we maximise the chances of good health and happiness for the longest possible time?

First of all, we need to give ourselves great fuel.  Nutricious foods, fresh air, good people and lots of opportunities to smile and laugh.  Next, we need to make sure our environment is supporting us, with clean air, beautiful spaces, positive people and great resources at our fingertips.  Then we need a whole lot of movement to keep our joints well oiled, our muscles strong and our organs performing at their best.  And finally regular upgrades do wonders.  Every seminar we attend or piece of information we learn gives us new choices.  Every new skill we learn expands our possibilities.  Every time we acknowledge an area we’re not happy with and find what we need to make that change, we add to our happiness, our resourcefulness and our overall wellbeing.

How can you look after yourself better?  The actions you take today determine the results you get in the future, so it’s well worth looking at what you’re doing now to figure out what your future is likely to hold.  If you don’t like what it tells you, then the time to make a change is now.