Self-Care for Leaders – It Starts With You

The Overall Impact of Self-Care for Leaders

Today’s challenging times afford us no more “someday I should” or “when I find the time, I will.”  

Self-care is a “now” word for our world today.  

And this “now” better be on your agenda for the benefit of yourself, your family, and your workplace.   

No longer a luxury, self-care is imperative to successfully overcoming the personal effects of a global pandemic and economic upheaval. 

Your team takes its cues from you.  

No matter what you write in your policy or say in your meetings, what you DO, whether consciously or unconsciously, is what SPEAKS volumes. 

So what is Self-Care? 

It is simply to care for oneself. 

Let’s concentrate this week on some self-care habits that you can implement to keep yourself physically and mentally healthy. 

It seems odd to think as adults that we might need reminding on how to take care of ourselves.  And yet, some are confused, often clouded by the stress of the moment, concerning what is and what is not self-care. 

As leaders we tend to want to: 

• Drive to push ahead
• Gain more knowledge
• Buy things
• Appear successful to others
• Get more done and in less time
• Be popular and promotable
• Increase our network

Self-care is a focus on our core, which is the center of our strength.  

It’s certainly not to say that these acts themselves are not appropriate. But without the balance of self-renewal, you can only drive such activities for so long without replenishing the fuel behind them. 

Let’s Begin with Your Body 

Self-care must start with your physical well-being, for without your body, nothing else will matter! 

Here are some questions to ask yourself: 

When is the last time I enjoyed what I call a “great night’s sleep?” when you woke up, REFRESHED! 

Ask yourself…What is keeping me from a “great night’s sleep?” and What steps could I take to better my rest?  

There is a good article from the Mayo Clinic on Healthy Sleep. 

How Do I Move in My Life?

Think about your day today.  How many steps did you take to your farthest destination?  If you, like many of us, are working from home, the answer to that question could be 15-50 steps at a time: or the distance to your kitchen. The same is true of restricted workspaces at the office. 

Moving is essential to your well-being. Blood needs to flow. Spinal fluid needs to flow. Digestive systems need movement to create flow.  Your lungs need to expand. Your heart needs some push to keep strong. 

a. Consider a daily step goal using a wrist band monitor to keep you on track. 

b. Move every 60-90 minutes. 

c. Move out of your house and around the block, if not around a park, as often as you can. 

You Are What You Eat 

Have you been feeling stiff as a board or toxic and distant?   

Maybe there are too many boxed, canned, and processed foods in your diet.  

You are becoming what you see in your grocery bag each week.

If you don’t like how you feel, this is something you do have total control over. 

To feel well and stay healthy in these stressful times you will need to be your best body self.  

Look inside your refrigerator and cupboards. Consider replacing the cans and boxes and bottles with the food you buy around the perimeter of the grocery store.  You might find it interesting this week to walk the store and notice the layout. The basics of what you need for health care are at the farthest points.  

Do your best, even make it a game to arrive at the check-out with more produce, dairy, meat, and seafood than you do anything else.  

What About Mental Self-Care? 

Recent publications warn us that the effects of COVID 19 impact our mental health in significant ways: 

• Isolation
• Fear
• Anxiety
• Mistrust
• Survival Instinct Overload
• Mild to severe depression
• Even suicidal tendencies are on the rise

How Do We Provide A Better Mental Health Care Plan for Ourselves?

• Again, movement is crucial – and the food we eat contributes to our mental state. 
• Find new ways to relax and relieve stress. If you can’t go to the gym, make the sidewalk or the park your friend.  
• Dump the social media scrolling and spend time with a friend; talk, walk or share a meal. 
• Detach from the news. What you don’t know about global events every moment of every day can help you more than hurt you when you feel drained and or depressed. 
• Engage your hobbies for distraction: read books, build model planes, assemble puzzles, walk your dog. 

Self-Care to Keep You Emotionally Fit 

Your emotions are continually affecting your thoughts, whether you recognize that process or not. 

Emotions, like your body, need to move. They demand movement. 

Holding them tight, ignoring them, berating yourself for feeling them, or indulging in ways that bury them – will not keep you emotionally fit.  

Here are some suggestions you might try to build healthy emotional management in your life: 

• Keeping a journal 

• Staying in touch with your friends. Checking in on them and responding in kind. 

• Allowing new friendships to form.  

• Permitting yourself to recognize your feelings. Today maybe you feel great! Tomorrow or this afternoon, you might feel sad, scared, or happy.  

• Applying the techniques from your physical and mental self-care will positively affect your feelings. 

By being aware of your emotional state, knowing that “this too shall pass,” and taking healthy personal self-care steps will keep you emotionally fit in challenging times.