Some time ago, I talked with a registered psychiatric nurse and a family friend to find out his thoughts on the definition of Mental wellness. He told me, “Mental wellness is a positive state of mental health. It is more than the absence of mental illness.” From this definition, I understood that you must be mentally sound to always be at your optimum best to function effectively and efficiently in your career workspace.
Furthermore, he said,
To be mentally healthy means that your mind is stable and functioning in your best interest. You can think, feel, and act in ways that create positive energy and impact your physical and social well-being.
Mentally well people are upbeat, self-assured, and happy. They are in control of their thoughts, emotions, and behavior. This enables them to handle challenges, build strong relationships, and enjoy life fully. Achieving good mental health will allow you to:
- realize your potentials,
- cope with the stress and challenges of life,
- engage in productive work,
- contribute to your community.
However, it is essential to state that sustaining mental health requires time and effort. The more you invest in your mental health, the stronger it will become. You can enhance your mood, build resilience, and get more enjoyment out of life if you always do the right things.
Here are quick highlights of what you can do to be productive:
- Learn to be at peace with yourself. We often don’t know how to be at peace with ourselves because we are burdened with many things out of our control.
- Get to know your actual worth and value by discerning who you are and what gives you the most desirable pleasure.
- Be thoroughly self-aware by acknowledging what you can and cannot change about yourself.
- Identify your abilities and weaknesses, accept them, build on them, and do your best with what you have.
- Pay attention to your own needs and feelings.
- Express your thoughts through a journal or blog to understand more about yourself.
- Spend some time searching the scriptures, for in them, you think you have eternal life (John 5:39).
- Work towards your objectives.
- Set SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound)
- Take intentional daily steps towards your goals, no matter how little it may seem.
- Maintain a healthy lifestyle. This is easier said than done because most people are guilty of an unhealthy lifestyle.
- Take balanced meals – you have to eat right to live right.
- Exercising regularly – exercising for physical well-being will enhance the brain’s functionality.
- Avoid alcohol consumption – shun alcohol in its entirety; it will only do more damage to your body system.
- Avoid cigarettes and other harmful substances – the best practice is not to indulge in all harmful narcotic and abusive substance influences.
- Possess a positive mindset – you must be sure of what you allow your mind to dwell upon wisely.
- Build strong relationships.
- Create for yourself daily God’s time to build intimacy with Him.
- Make time for family and friends, and share life’s joys and sorrows with them.
- Create a financial budget. Avoid overspending and focus on ‘needs’ instead of ‘wants.’
- Intentionally create new sources of income.
- Stick to your financial budget by exercising self-control to avoid impulsive buying.
- Volunteer for a cause
- Volunteer your skill where people would most appreciate it.
- Volunteer your time promoting a social justice campaign.
Be involved in the community with a cause that gives you a sense of purpose, meaning, and satisfaction. You will not live twice; now is the time to make the most of your life. Be a happy contributor to the community where you are a resident. Winston Churchill’s advice is legendary even in our contemporary times. He said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” Trust me; the rest will be history!
Your mental wellness is essential to us at the School of Transformational Leadership. We believe that every social transformation begins with the sound mental health of everyone involved in it. You don’t have to experience total burnout to bring a change to your neighborhood. For that not to happen, we can help you stay on top of your game by participating in our Executive Wellness Leadership program or our On-site Wellness Leadership Day Program, which is a coaching program designed to help those struggling with depression, hopelessness, and meaninglessness of life in a unique transformative environment through faith-based approach intended to address the whole person – emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Contact us, and an enrollment team member will walk you through the specific program that will suit your needs.
If you are passionate about writing and understand the power to shape culture through writing, please contact us immediately, and our representatives will walk you through how you can join our team of writers at the Africana Leadership Digest.
Author: Olusegun Osineye
Olusegun Osineye earned his Doctor of Ministry (DMin) in Transformational Leadership from Boston University. He's passionate about creatively adding value to the black race by utilizing life's simple philosophy for their flourishing.
