Intellectual Wellness
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Intellectual Wellness
What creates intellectual wellness?
. Curiosity
. Creativity
. Open to learning
. Be aware of all available resources to learn
. Reading
. Mentally stimulating activities
CURIOSITY
Another way to say intellectual wellness might be a simple word – ‘curiosity’. Kids are great at this skill. How many times does a typical 4 yr old say ‘why?” Based on curiosity we can expand our intellectual wellness by incorporating ‘why’ and ‘how’ in our thinking. Curiosity is a skill available to anyone – young, old, impoverished, wealthy, any gender. Where we live doesn’t matter. How we were raised doesn’t matter. Language of birth doesn’t matter. Curiosity is the first pillar of intellectual health.
CREATIVITY
When we think of the word creativity, what usually comes to mind is an artist, writer or musician. But if we look closely at the word it just means to create something. The definition is ‘to produce through imaginative skill. You may be a great cook or baker. Plants may be what you love. People may wonder at your knack for choosing the exact right furniture for a room. You may be the king or queen of taking photos. Don’t know what you would love to create? Think about it for a few days. You’ll be amazed at how many ideas pop into your mind. Each time you have an idea, write it down and put it in some kind of container. After a week or two, you may be surprised at how many creative ideas you have.
OPEN TO LEARNING NEW THINGS
Once you’ve saved a few creative ideas, choose whichever one(s) you would like to pursue. Check out where you could learn more about your choice. We are so fortunate to live in this age of technology. At your fingertips are thousands, if not millions of subjects for you to investigate. Videos, webinars, information sites, classes, affinity groups – just for you. No doubt that the Internet can be a negative influence for some. But it is also rich with opportunities to learn. Use your onscreen time to positively impact your life and check out all the ways you can expand your knowledge of what your interests are, or find new ones. Openness is a major factor in any dimension of health. Be open to learning new things.
AWARENESS OF AVAILABLE RESOURCES
Every community has information for you to take advantage of. Libraries are usually thought of as a thing of the past, but in addition to paper books, they offer audio books, videos and classes from scholastic to physical. Learn to be more computer literate, learn coding, robotics or take a yoga class. Every library has monthly calendars available that show you all the choices. Community centers offer educational opportunities. Most junior colleges have classes for non registered students. Check out some faith communities in your are. Many if not most of these resources are free. You are the one who has to take the first step and take and commit.
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READING
Today reading can mean a physical book, an Ebook or an audio book or a website. You don’t even have to leave your house to find something good to read. And the subject matter – provided it makes you feel better, not worse – doesn’t matter. Whatever your interests are, someone has written about them. Whether your reading becomes a solitary event or you join a book club (in person or online), you don’t have to set aside hours to read. You can listen to a book in the car, or with your phone while you are cooking or eating dinner or making the bed. The written word is always available to you. Take advantage of the opportunities.
MENTALLY STIMULATING ACTIVITIES
Anything that takes a bit of concentration is mentally stimulating. Everyone loves mindless TV. It’s relaxing. But something that stimulates your mind is much more engaging, exciting and rewarding. No matter if you would rather put pieces of a crossword puzzle together, play a board game, play trivia or try to beat yesterday’s Wordle score, it’s all intellectually stimulating. And when you are doing these enjoyable activities in a group setting, conversation can spark your intellectual health.
With so much information pouring into our world, it pays to be mentally sharp. By continuing on our path to learning and always building our knowledge base, we can make better choices for our lives, our communities and the lives of those close to us.