By Hannah Whitesides, Retreat Leader & Fear Management Specialist for our Company Retreats

Occupational or career wellness is rarely thought of but it is a key component of our overall wellness.

Occupational wellness focuses on being satisfied within our chosen career paths without compromising the harmony between our work and personal life.

Part of this means being in an environment that allows us to showcase our talents and enhance our skills. We spend up to 40+ hours a week in our work environment, which means that addressing our level of occupational wellness is imperative. 

Here are 10 questions you can ask yourself to determine where you fall on the occupational wellness scale:

1. Do I feel like the job I have is where I need to be?

2. Do I feel like the position I have is where I need to be?

3. Do I feel like the company I am with is where I need to be?

4. Does my work motivate me?

5. Do I feel like I contribute to the overall success of the company?

6. Do I dread going to work? 

7. Am I growing within this career? Individually and occupationally?

8. Do I have a good relationship with my colleagues? Boss?

9. Do I feel like my job is draining? 

10. Does my job inspire me?

Someone who has a healthy level of occupational wellness, would answer “yes” to all questions except question 6 and 9. If your answers were mostly “no’s” that means you’re spending much of your time in a place that isn’t helping you grow and is affecting all other elements of your wellness. All seven dimensions of wellness lean on each other. If one is severely lacking, the others struggle as well.

A common trend throughout my college experience is that students were going after careers that made a lot of money. You rarely hear someone say they want to go into a career because it makes them happy. But let's put it this way, if I came to your door and said I was going to give you a large check every 2 weeks but you have to give me your happiness in exchange. Answering mostly “no’s” to the questions above and continuing to stay in that job, position, or company is the same thing. 

Occupational wellness is no joke and it shouldn’t be taken lightly. So ask yourself, are you occupationally well? And if not, what are you going to do about it?

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Project Passport is a proactive mental wellness company that aims to bring mental wellness retreats, workshops and other services to company teams. We also help individuals create joy in their lives every step of the way. To learn more about our company retreats and services, click here. Our travel retreats will resume in the future as the world reopens.