Prioritizing Self-Care

When I think about self-care, two thoughts immediately come to mind. 

The first is a statement embedded in the safety briefings delivered by flight attendants, when they instruct passengers to “...secure your mask on first and then assist the other person.” The idea is that if you rush to take care of others in a crisis before ensuring your own well-being is intact, you expose both parties to further risk and failure. 

The other thought is how often I hear people say things like, “I have to...”, “I need to...”, and other declarative statements that put the needs, desires, and perceived emergencies of others above our own, which often leads to feelings of frustration, exhaustion, and being taken for granted.

Self-care is much more complicated than being a bit more selfish or spending money on oneself and it is not nearly as dismissive as squeezing in a few minutes for meditation, yoga, healthy eating or exercise. Self-care includes, but is not limited to, living in alignment with your core values, prioritizing people and activities that bring you joy, saying “no” with confidence and saying “yes” with full commitment, finding balance in your wellness (mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health), taking 100% responsibility for our thoughts, actions, and behaviors, and being extremely mindful of our self-talk.

I encourage you to self-assess the current state of your wellbeing. Move self-care to the top of all of your many to-do lists, commitments, even if you have to put an appointment on your calendar to do so. Remember, there are no awards for being the most exhausted, drained or burned out leader. Work to have your leadership charter a path that others want to emulate, not run away from.

Quote for Growth:

“Of all the judgements we pass in life, none is more important than the judgement we pass on ourselves.” - Nathaniel Branden

Video of the Week:

Inspirational video about self-care as a revolution.