Long before I ever considered blogging, possibly even breathing, a man by the name of Zig Ziglar presented an illustration called The Wheel of Life. In this wheel, Zig illustrates the importance of seven crucial areas of our lives: Career, Financial, Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Family and Social. Zig tapped into a universal truth with this simple diagram; what you do in one of these areas of life will affect your overall ride.

The Wheel Leaks!

If it isn’t maintained, it gets out of whack. A perfect example: When I graduated college I thought my wheel was pretty round; until Maura and I got engaged. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve never been more excited about anything in my life but we had no idea how we were going to pay for it. Maura was in a career transition, so much of my income was going to things like rent and lights at her apartment. I hadn’t been doing any saving or even budgeting up to that point, so my wheel wasn’t as round as I had thought. As a result, the ride got a little bumpy!

Pump it up Schwarzenegger style!

Thankfully, around that time we discovered Dave Ramsey. Over the next few months, we hunkered down, cut our lifestyle and began selling anything that wasn’t nailed down. We began pumping the wheel like Arnold pumps iron! It was a perfect opportunity for Maura and I to work on something together. In the end, we had our wedding and our honeymoon without acquiring any debt!

All Parts Need Each Other

An even more profound aspect of the wheel is how connected the different areas of our life are. You can be the champ at work, but if you neglect your family it will catch up to you there. You can be the best parent, but weigh 500 pounds and not live to meet your grandchildren. It is so important to give attention, or “air” to every section in the wheel. The other sections depend on it!

Question: As 2015 really gets moving, what areas do you need to give some air to? Leave a reply in the comments!