Signs and Sources of My Personal Well-Being and Strategies to Enhance It, Literature Review Example

Abstract

Our life is a myriad of complex emotions, one that speaks of innumerable gestures of joy and triumph. In short our lives are meant to be lived to the fullest. There maybe are shares of happiness and sorrows, which forms part and parcel of the unique disposition gifted to us. Better understood by my experience, complete positive utilization of our spirits is the key to being equivocal in all aspects of living. We need to be dominated by love, emotional bliss and above all happiness.  We all know that the days in our life are numbered, so why not enjoy every drop, every fraction of what is bestowed to us? Why not fill our life with a garden full of roses, accepting the proportion of thorns in the way? The question is how best we can do so. We can stipulate a self evaluation process, the basic goal of which would be personal well being.  This term might sound self centric but is the final word of truth. A happy, self satisfied person can imbibe the spirit of well being and make the world a better place to live in. Our research would thus focus on three obvious questions associated with it:

1. What are the signs of Personal Well being?
2. What are the sources of personal well being?
3. What are the strategies for personal well being?
4. What are the strategies for Personal Well being?
5. What are the signs of Personal well being?

Personal well being is a connotation that describes psychological wealth of an individual.  It is often easy to decipher a man who has an eye on personal well being. Typical attributes to me include a man conscious of his surroundings, with a vigil on his mind and body, takes care of him. He is quite unlike from Mr. Harry, the friendly neighbor, who wakes up in the morning, sits in the sofa, fights with his wife and gobbles large Mac Burgers watching his favorite sports program. Well, let me discuss the signs of personal well being, best described “as the avoidance of psychopathology, negative behavioral outcomes, or illness is no guarantee that one will also flourish and be well in mutiple realms of life” (Ryffe & Singer, 2003, p. 27).

Positive emotions and optimism are important constituents in personal well being of an individual. Life has its ups and downs, making us enriched with varied kinds of experiences. There may be instances of joy, like when I scored high marks in my exam, or there may be potholes of misery. I still remember the day when I lost my grandmother, my heart wept but I was a part of evolution. I had the hope in my mind that my grandmother would rest in peace. So for well being we have to live with positive spirit, giving less importance to the word “No” or “Cannot”.

Our other main source of well being is life satisfaction and evaluation of important life domains like work, health and relationships. Life circumscribes within the domain of our work, as it enhances the mental agility and meets our needs to be productive. Work gives us immense pleasure and satisfaction and at the end of the day makes us a happy person. Of course a demanding boss, work overload, criticism, odd working hours may trigger that frown in our face, but again these are a component of job hazards that is faced by all.

Health is wealth, which means it is necessary to be healthy to lead a life of contentment. Sickness, depression and health concerns decrease the longevity of human beings. Morbidity , the likelihood of developing a specific illness often raises the concern level to the extent that the basic well being is hampered. It leads to temporary hypertension and other critical illness. Often people may be suffering from chronic disease that may destroy their mental strength. But determination to combat the disease will enhance the spiritual strength which in turn will increase physical stamina. Survival, age should be accepted with positivity and grace. Health just like machine needs repair once in a while, so it is good to take precautions to lead a healthy life, with balanced diet, exercise and less of fat, sugary foods. Once in every year a health check up also is a sign about the potential well being, it is a sign that one is careful and is taking care of his health.

Relationships form the crux of happiness. Well being is a manifestation of happiness, and being congenial and happy in a relationship makes it up. You may be a parent, a brother, a teacher, a friend, a husband- the role is of less importance. What matters is the love, compassion and understanding in relationships. Fights, dispute, anger and jealousy are attributions of negative energy in individuals. It leads to a sad mind in turn a over worked mental agony. Live and love all the relationships that you come across and give their due diligence, so that our lives are full of joys and brightness.

Another point of well being is the sense of control over my emotions. Yes I think that is the driving force in my life, it makes me stretch and bend my life framed as per my policies and ethics. I have a bad cold and I am still tempted to drink the cold drink in the freezer, It is important for me to restrain, to activate the internal energy to stipulate my activities. That makes me happy, gives me the sense about my self-efficacy and ownership of my life.

The interpretation to the meaning of my life has given a level of consistency to my well being. Going to movies, eating out, hanging out are pleasures that I envisage but life to me is a different ball game. To me happiness is in sharing, in being among the underprivileged, in working for the people who are hungry, poor and sick. My well being should become a cause of well being of hundreds of other people around me.

What Are the Sources of Personal Well Being?

Personal well being is a subject that gives me immense pleasure and joy as it is a platform where I can evaluate the experiences that have made me above all a good human being. Let me discuss some of the factors that are responsible for my personal well being. Firstly in revolves around my biological and constitutional facets. My parents say that during birth I had low temperature and my body was cold. The doctor had advised my mother to keep me very close to her heart, so that I can feel her warmth. Typical of me, I still crave for that warmth in this age. That feeling of being nearest to the closest person in life has developed a sense of security within me. I know that my roots and my emotions are secure enough and no indulgence can take it away from me.

My childhood had been full of happiness and love. I was taught to be loved, to take care of myself and to take care of the people around me.  I was also motivated to be independent and to follow my instincts. My family members were very complacent and jovial. They enjoyed every moment of their life and gave me the best days a child could cherish. These moments have made me a jovial, fun loving man and have been very helpful in developing my aesthetic temperament. I know that the world is beautiful, people around me are nice and that hostility reduces the level of the quality of my life. I love and work without the fear of rejection or hatred. Thus a lot depends on the family structure and pattern to determine the behavior of individuals. The correct behavior of parenting style helps to make a tiny little baby into a better person. My friend Rob, had a unhappy childhood. His parents were divorced and he had to live his life in the hostel and eventually with his aged grandparents. He was lonely, reprimanded.. he had little friends to share. He never got the love and security from parents. This made him a loner and a man of suspicion and ill temper. He resorted to all kinds of notorious activities just to attract the attention of parents, just to make him more important. His life had been in misery to the point, now he is locked up in a rehabilitation home for alleged drug abuse.

Another source of my well being is my emotional intelligence, as the saying goes, “abilities such as being able to motivate oneself and persist in the face of frustrations; to control impulse and delay gratification; to regulate one’s moods and keep distress from swamping the ability to think; to empathize and to hope” (Goleman, 1994, p. 34). It is good to know my weakness and my strengths, so that failure will not break my heart. I know to manage my own assertions, goals, vision and contemplations and it gives a boost to my confidence. I know that my actions and expressions are good, productive and beneficial to the society I live in.

Well, personal relationships are also an important source of my well being. I feel happy being with the people I love. It defines and makes my life complete. When I first won the title of best writer in college, I was happy and overwhelmed. But at that point my happiness seems to multiply when I shared it with my friends and family. And also the relationship with my partner. We are mutually exhaustive, both complement with each other well. There is a strange level of understanding between us, we are aware of the weaknesses of each other. We fight and  argue only to reach a joint decision at the end. Relationships are not necessarily dominating each other, nor are they rigid expressions of one sided philosophies. We partner in thoughts, actions and in a mutual relationship with each other.

What Are the Strategies for Personal Well Being?

One of the important strategies for personal well being is the maintenance of emotional intelligence. We should have a deep insight and be flexible to perceive and be effective in the expression of our emotions. Instead of shouting and screaming, our emotions should coordinate with our reflexes to match the dignity and sanctity of situations. We also understand the method in which our emotions transpire into our thinking, decision making and coping with the stress factors. We should regulate our impulses according to situations, and not be hasty in performing obscure actions out of rage. Yes for emotional well being we must maintain a balance between our mind and heart.

We should eempathize with others, be compassionate and understand the value of situations. Just in fit of anger, you are blunt with your boss, or you are abusive towards your partner- these sudden impulses would only make your grief, your anxiety stay longer and increase the level of stress in your ultimate well being.

I am often faced with a situation of contempt. Age and hypertension has increased the stress in my father. He is very apprehensive and concern over my future prospects. He is also aware of my tendencies of being over indulgent in social work. He nags about a single issue? How do I deal with it ? Should I scream, stay away, be indifferent? Following the ROWS analysis, I have to consider the risk, opportunities, weakness and strength of the situation. I know that the potential risk of the situation, that my father will be further ill if I don’t clarify his fears. Secondly I would take the next available option to address the issue and discuss in a common platform, about the truth or pertinence of his fear about my career.

I would take the opportunity to clear all ambiguity between us. Then will explain to him in detail of my earnest wish to help the poor and the needy and would convince him that I will do it after I am established in my area of work. Then I would discuss with my logic with my emotions and facts. My love, emotional attachment and the good teachings of my parents would help me deliver and make him have faith in my ambitions and activities.

Personal well being is subjective. It can bring joy, happiness and a permanent relief to the anxiety and depression in our lives. Worry multiplies into further worries and elevates stress in the body. Excess stress leads to hypertension, cholesterol, heart disease, depression and other symptoms that may be detrimental to health. The ideology and principle is to follow a path of self satisfaction, self confidence, self esteem and a deep rooted sympathetic understanding towards others. It may be our family, friends, office or community.

Follow the rules set up by your heart.. Yet ascertain between the right and the wrong. Healthy diet, an exercise regimen, happiness, proper sleep, friends, relations, social work and being a part and part of the community program are basic traits to make your well being a permanent aspect of life. To me well being also comes with a sense of making a difference to the society at large.

References

CJ Dunst, HE Leet, CM Trivette, (1988) – The Journal of Special Education, Family resources, personal well-being, and early intervention, Last Intervened on October 23, 2009.

Suh. EM, Lucas, RE, & Smith, HL (1999). Subjective well-being: Three decades of progress, Last Intervened on October 23, 2009

E Diener, (1984) Psychological Bulletin, The negative side of social interaction: Impact on psychological well-being, Last Intervened on October 23, 2009

Anna L. D. Lau, Robert A. Cummins and Wenda Mcpherson, (2005),  An Investigation into the Cross-Cultural Equivalence of the Personal Wellbeing Index. Last Intervened on October 23, 2009

CD Ryff (1989), Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being– Journal of personality and social psychology,. Last Intervened on October 23, 2009