It’s January 30. Not only are we way past goal-setting, we’re also wayyyy past “blue Monday” and “Ditch New Years Resolutions Day”. Here we are in the thick of it, struggling with overwhelm, trying to figure out how to stay (get!) on track with goals, while also not burning out. I would say it’s just me, but it’s not. Pretty much every client, every colleague, friend, and family member is already battling head-spinning-ly long to-do lists, and are feeling the hamster wheel spin and resultant disorientation.
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I myself have had a couple of “which way is up?” days this January. Here’s what’s saving me: my tiny bit of daily self-care. If you read my last post, you know I’ve committed to “FUN” as my guiding word and theme for the year. Personally, I can’t have that—can’t have the fun—without taking care of myself, and putting some of my basic needs, including the need to get grounded, first.
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So often, when we think of self-care, we think: expensive, a luxury, a huge investment of time and resources we don’t have. This makes taking care of ourselves just another hassle of a thing to incorporate on our long (I did say head-spinning-ly) list of things to manage and do. So we skip it.
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But this year, I’m making the case for self-care as an advanced skill. Chrissy Carter, one of my beloved and brilliant favorite yoga teachers, talks often about what makes a yogi “advanced,” and it isn’t how many chaturangas (for the non-yogi: those are really hard push-up things that people like to do to get super sweaty, but are really hard to do even one of with proper alignment) you can do, it’s that you know when you need to take them out of your practice. This is exactly how I’m thinking about self-care.
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Self-care is not about fancy spa days, expensive and restrictive cleanses, or luxury vacations, in the hopes that this will “save” you. NO. Truly advanced self-care is about giving yourself what YOU need to show up fully as a human, in all the roles of your life, whether they are personal or professional.
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For me, this quite literally comes down to 3 minutes of breathing, gratitude, and intention setting at the very beginning of every day. Before coffee, before talking, before technology, before everything. I know it’s hard to believe that this practice can make such a huge impact. I get it. And you’re basically proving the point with your disbelief  😜. Self-care does not need to be massive to matter. My practice is so tiny, but it is super grounding, and sets me up for the very best possible day.
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Want to incorporate simple, sustainable self-care that works for you in your daily life, but not sure where to start? PLEASE hit reply and let me know. Already on it? Please let me know that too! Let’s make 2020 the year you crush goals without crushing your spirit or burning out.
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