The Wheel of Life

One of the first steps of using the Law of Attraction is to set your goals. You must know what it is you want before the Universe can begin to manifest it for you. When teaching someone to do this, I generally start off with the questions “What do you want out of life? What are your dreams?” While these questions work with some people, with other people I get a glazed look of incomprehension, or, even worse, a look of fear. You see, some people simple do not know what they want out of life. Either they have never tried to figure out what their dreams really are, or they have been put down so many times that they have forgotten what it means to dream. For these people, the concept of a life purpose is simply out of the question. To get at the dreams these people have, you need to provide a little more guidance and suggestion. That is where the Wheel of Life comes into play. Dividing Life Up The Wheel of Life is a process of dividing up one’s life into a number of parts. Then, rather than trying to deal with the entirety of one’s life, you can deal with just one part at a time. Stephen Covey talked about this concept in his book “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” by talking about the various roles a person fulfills. So when I see the look of either incomprehension or fear, I immediately move towards the Wheel of Life. After calming the person down and reassuring them that we will not try to cover EVERYTHING, I then start to divide a person’s life into pieces. Most Wheel of Life diagrams have either 6 or 8 pieces, depending on how you group activities. Working with the 6 piece model, you can divide your life into Physical (health and fitness), Occupational (profession and finances), Relational (family and friends), Social (organizations), Mental (learning, reading, writing, etc.), and Environmental (house, possessions, etc.). This grouping is what I use; others may do something different. The 8 piece model simply divides some of the groups differently. The key is to segment the life of the person so you can talk about one part of his life rather than the whole thing. Purpose of the Wheel By dividing up the life into pieces, you accomplish several key tasks. First, you show someone that their life is not one-dimensional. They have multiple pieces, and a lack of achievement in one area does not mean they are inadequate, particularly if you can point to successes in other areas. Second, you give them a focus which allows them to avoid being overwhelmed. Many people are confused when they try to evaluate their entire life, but most people can focus on one area at a time. Third, you can introduce the concept of living a balanced life. You can show them where they have made progress and where they haven’t, which can provide an initial motivation for action. Using the Wheel of Life can provide a clear starting point for action, especially for those who are just beginning their self-development. By focusing on each area of the Wheel, a person can set clear goals, which can then be manifested by the Law of Attraction.