Making the Eight Dimensions of Wheel part of daily life can improve mental and physical health.

The tractor wheel of life will help you identify how satisfied you are with each area of your current farming life.

This strategy is a practical aid to start developing healthy habits that can have a positive impact on your physical and mental health and subsequently your farm business.

All eight spokes of the wheel are interconnected and contribute towards a balanced farming life. Learning about the spokes can help you to incorporate wellness into your everyday life.

1. 1. My farm business —compared to your objectives how successful is your business in delivering on them
   2. Farming know why —defined and achievable goals and a feeling of satisfaction with farming efforts.
   3. My health & well being —making healthy choices, maintaining physical fitness, mental health and social relationships, and receiving appropriate support for any issues.
   4. My family & quality of life —health, comfort, happiness and supportive interactions with immediate extended family.
   5. Money & finance —financial security, effective budgeting and the ability to accommodate unplanned expenses.
   6. Environment—organised and uncluttered personal surroundings (e.g. home and work).
   7. Succession planning—a long-term plan for the farm business which protects assets, business and family.
   8. The future —positivity about the future of the family and farm business.

1. Download a copy of the tractor wheel of life.
2. Think about the spokes of the tractor wheel and the subject each spoke relates to.
3. Think about your everyday life at the current time for each of these subjects.
4. Score yourself on how satisfied you are with each subject. 0 at the centre of the wheel represents the need to work on that subject while 10 on the outer edge indicates that you are highly satisfied in that area of your life. It is important that you record the first number that comes to mind, not the score you think you should have.
5. When you have a score on each spoke draw a line from score to score to create a ‘wheel’ shape.
6. How well will your wheel turn?

If you are happy in your day to day life and confident about the future then the shape of your wheel should be large and smooth. A smaller, bumpier wheel would reflect that you may be feeling stressed and unhappy with the lowest scoring spokes highlighting what is causing you the most stress.

Remember, a healthy wheel is not one that scores highly in all areas, but one that is balanced.

Can you imagine driving a tractor fitted with your wheel?