Balancing the 4 quadrants of life is a topic shared by many coaches. This article deals with the life quadrants and how one can use them to better his or her life. Simply put, these quadrants all add up to two things; our actions and attitude, of which are brought about by our words and thoughts.
What happens is that when we absorb information, process it in our brain and then talk about them. In this simple process, our attitude towards that topic is shown by our attitude. If you are not aware of them, spiritual, mental, emotional and physical are the life quadrants. Stephen Covey has pointed out that in balancing the 4 quadrants of life, 3 of these quadrants influence the outcome of the forth one. Generally, this will influence the way we will behave in the quadrants.
The physical quadrant is primarily influenced by how well the spiritual, mental and physical quadrants are nurtured and understood. The physical generally shows the output of the other three directly or indirectly but the manifestation of acts can originate there. The physical is the one quadrant that is visible to all those around us. People will often be judgmental when we ignore, under develop or negatively feed the other three quadrants because they always notice that something is wrong with our physical quadrant. Therefore, it is critical that we commit to improving the first three quadrants knowing that the fourth will come automatically.
According to some, our mental quadrant is more of a consumer. This is because it takes in information using the senses; sight, smell, taste, hearing and touch. One cannot always control the information we take in, but we can control how we use it or react to it. By using our inner voice, we can affect a positive change. This is the only way one can control his or her mental quadrant. This quadrant is also known as our conscious. Simply put, the words we utter as a result to our mental consumption and absorption, influence our future. We should try our level best to dwell on the positive rather than the negative.
As for the emotional quadrant, it is made up of feelings. These feelings are nothing more than stored memory of past events or experiences. Most often we see them in the form of mental pictures and thoughts. Feelings retained may be positive or negative because they are brought in through our mental absorption and like words, they can be reflected in actions in our physical quadrant. The more negative feelings can dominate our attention, the more we are going to allow them to affect our physical actions and voice.
Faith is one of the major aspects of our spiritual quadrant. We normally show or express faith or lack thereof in whatever we speak or do. But I feel the spiritual quadrant is more broadly concerned with the interaction of the life of mind and spirit and its relationship to being in the world. I like how one author defines spiritual intelligence as "the ability to act with wisdom and compassion, while maintaining inner and outer peace, regardless of the circumstances”.
Generally, spiritual, mental and emotional quadrants provide input, biases and recommended actions that can affect the physical quadrant. However, understanding how to balance all the quadrants can lead to a better life, better relationships, and better leadership qualities in your work environment. An imbalance may lead to a perception of your physical quadrant that is negative, abrasive or even dangerous to society. The choice is yours!
By Ron McIntyre -
Semi-Retired Leadership Anthropologist, Author, Business Consultant, Owner, Mentor, Speaker
Published Apr 3, 2019
What happens is that when we absorb information, process it in our brain and then talk about them. In this simple process, our attitude towards that topic is shown by our attitude. If you are not aware of them, spiritual, mental, emotional and physical are the life quadrants. Stephen Covey has pointed out that in balancing the 4 quadrants of life, 3 of these quadrants influence the outcome of the forth one. Generally, this will influence the way we will behave in the quadrants.
The physical quadrant is primarily influenced by how well the spiritual, mental and physical quadrants are nurtured and understood. The physical generally shows the output of the other three directly or indirectly but the manifestation of acts can originate there. The physical is the one quadrant that is visible to all those around us. People will often be judgmental when we ignore, under develop or negatively feed the other three quadrants because they always notice that something is wrong with our physical quadrant. Therefore, it is critical that we commit to improving the first three quadrants knowing that the fourth will come automatically.
According to some, our mental quadrant is more of a consumer. This is because it takes in information using the senses; sight, smell, taste, hearing and touch. One cannot always control the information we take in, but we can control how we use it or react to it. By using our inner voice, we can affect a positive change. This is the only way one can control his or her mental quadrant. This quadrant is also known as our conscious. Simply put, the words we utter as a result to our mental consumption and absorption, influence our future. We should try our level best to dwell on the positive rather than the negative.
As for the emotional quadrant, it is made up of feelings. These feelings are nothing more than stored memory of past events or experiences. Most often we see them in the form of mental pictures and thoughts. Feelings retained may be positive or negative because they are brought in through our mental absorption and like words, they can be reflected in actions in our physical quadrant. The more negative feelings can dominate our attention, the more we are going to allow them to affect our physical actions and voice.
Faith is one of the major aspects of our spiritual quadrant. We normally show or express faith or lack thereof in whatever we speak or do. But I feel the spiritual quadrant is more broadly concerned with the interaction of the life of mind and spirit and its relationship to being in the world. I like how one author defines spiritual intelligence as "the ability to act with wisdom and compassion, while maintaining inner and outer peace, regardless of the circumstances”.
Generally, spiritual, mental and emotional quadrants provide input, biases and recommended actions that can affect the physical quadrant. However, understanding how to balance all the quadrants can lead to a better life, better relationships, and better leadership qualities in your work environment. An imbalance may lead to a perception of your physical quadrant that is negative, abrasive or even dangerous to society. The choice is yours!
By Ron McIntyre -
Semi-Retired Leadership Anthropologist, Author, Business Consultant, Owner, Mentor, Speaker
Published Apr 3, 2019
