We live in a ‘hustle and grind’ culture, and as high-performing ambitious women it can be tricky to draw the line in the sand.
This ‘sleep when you’re dead’ mentality that was once encouraged to drive motivation and performance is only making us crash and burn. We’re so focussed on meeting deadlines and getting the job done as efficiently as we can, that any form of self-care tends to go out the window. But at some point we have to ask ourselves what the pay-off is for all the hours and mental capacity we’re giving to the workplace.
Life is a fine balance between taking care of yourself, and serving other people. With hustling comes compromising. While it’s fine to prioritise your work at times, it’s important to take inventory of exactly what you’re compromising on. When was the last time you had some time for you, or did something that really filled up your own cup? Let’s not forget us wahine with tamariki and the responsibilities that being a working mumma entails.
Self-care is what helps us build resilience to those everyday stressors in life. When we take the steps to look after ourselves on a daily basis, we’re better equipped to handle whatever life throws at us. Self-care isn’t just about meditating and finding moments to relax (although, that does help!), it’s about taking care of yourself holistically – emotionally, physically and spiritually.
Take inventory of how you’re feeling often and ask yourself if you’re making time for those everyday things you know will benefit you on a holistic level. Some questions to check in with yourself on a regular basis might be:
Are you eating well?
Are you making time for regular exercise?
What are you doing to nurture those important relationships in your life?
How are you processing your emotions?
How to start prioritising self-care:
- Assess your needs (and what’s really important!) – figure out what your non-negotiables are and what is really worth your time and energy.
- Set aside time for self-care – make self-care a priority and schedule time for doing what’s important for you. Whether that’s ten minutes each day for meditation or scheduling a coffee date with yourself once a week to realign with your goals.
- Practice setting boundaries – identify the areas that you struggle saying no to, and practice putting boundaries in place to protect your time and energy.
It’s time to start taking care of you! Prioritising those every-day practices to manage your mental and physical well being is so important, so you can put your best foot forward and show up in all areas of your life. You’ve got this wahine toa! x
Ngā mihi nui
Mel Beirne
Mā te huruhuru ka rere te manu (with feathers a bird can fly)
