The One Resolution Every Leader Needs
One of the best resolutions you can make today is a financial one. It’s a commitment to invest in your future well-being. Specifically, taking steps to preserve or improve your own well-being and happiness is simply called self-care. Among the mountain pile of firm decisions to do or not do something this year, this is the one resolution every leader needs
We often prioritize on our stock market portfolio than our health. The issue is that later we will spend a significant portion of the nest egg we accumulate repairing and addressing the health we neglected along the way.
According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Healthcare spending in the United States grew by 7.5% in 2023. Imagine achieving a 7.5% return on our investments – it’s a reminder that healthcare spending tends to increase faster than many of our financial investments. While these figures may vary for my readers outside the United States, the overall trend is often similar.
Investing in our health starts with a very underestimated concept known as self-care. Self-care encompasses more than just eating healthy, and exercising; it involves taking care of our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. It means treating your body, mind, and spirit with respect, and kindness. This practice is essential for living a long, healthy, and fulfilling life.
The Benefits of Self-Care
We can experience numerous immediate benefits from self-care when we begin to prioritize our well-being. These benefits include:
- Improved self-image
- Nurtured relationships.
- Increased productivity and sharper decision-making and priority-setting abilities.
In addition to these short-term advantages, there are also long-term benefits such as:
- Reduced spending on health-related issues.
- A greater likelihood of enjoying our golden years.
- Creating a less stressful environment for our families when they care for us during those golden years.
The Challenges of Self-Care
Taking care of our well-being can be challenging, often because we make it so.
Many of us prioritize the well-being of others over our own. It can be incredibly rewarding to make someone else happy. Think about it: seeing someone smile can make you want to smile too, even if you don’t know the reason behind their happiness.
While some people find self-care easy, many others experience feelings of guilt when it comes to pampering themselves.
Another obstacle to self-care is tendency to push it aside during stressful periods such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. That challenge is even greater for those dealing with a tragic loss. Ironically, self-care becomes especially important during these times.
How To Care For Yourself
Taking care of yourself means being kind to yourself. Make yourself one of the people you treat with kindness and do something special for yourself. Here are a few ideas:
- First, develop a plan. A crucial element is to include self-care as part of your financial investment strategy, as it serves as a prevention measure.
- Practice saying “no” more often. Set boundaries, especially if you tend to please others at the expense of your own needs.
- If possible, take a long lunch break or consider taking a half-day vacation on Friday to do something special for yourself.
- Enjoy your favorite meal with your best friend.
- Make time to meditate and reflect. Remind yourself of your value.
- Speak affirmatively to yourself and acknowledge your strengths. It’s important to stop self-criticism and negative thoughts you have about yourself.
“I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. – Psalm 139:14
- Plan to take mental breaks – these “pit stops” allow your brain to rest from stressful activities.
- Take time to celebrate your achievements, both big and small, in your way.
Prioritize and take care of your body for the future. The best way to minimize the effects of time on your body includes regular exercise and rest, maintaining a healthy diet, and nurturing your mind through meditation and connecting with God.
Barriers To Self-Care
There are many barriers to self-care. Some are about priorities such as time constraints which require different choices. Some are perceived barriers such as financial constraints. In reality, some of the most effective self-care actions do not require a financial commitment.
Guilt. The fear of being selfish. Self-care is respecting yourself just as you respect others. Spiritually you are to put others first. This does not mean you should not care for yourself. We are to love our neighbors as ourselves; not more than ourselves.
Perfectionism. Makes you push beyond necessary boundaries to try to attain an unattainable goal – with much stress.
Social or Emotional Support. Many require emotional support and help from others to focus on doing what is right for themselves.
Caring for ourselves starts with two fundamental givens. First, self-care addresses the body, mind, and soul. Second, we cannot love someone else if we don’t know how to love ourselves.
As managers of others, parents, influencers, teachers, and other leaders, one of the best decisions we can make is to resolve to take better care of our well-being and act on it. In doing so, we will influence others to take care of themselves. This is particularly important given the increased demands from our families, friends, and jobs.
When formulating a New Year’s resolution, one of the best commitments a leader can adopt is to focus on self-care.
Empowered Leader Reflection
What steps will you take to enhance your self-care this year?
If this resonates with you, please share your thoughts with us below.
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