Have you thought about how being good to yourself allows you to show up more for others?
[Estimated reading time: 3 minutes, 18 seconds.]
Taking some time on a recent trip to Northern California to appreciate the view.
Quick hit: Thanks to Stacy Heller of Stacy Connects for hosting me on her radio show this week. You can find it on Spotify or Apple. In the 1st 15 minutes we talk about how Stacy and how her love of gardening helps in getting some of her anger out. Then we get into why I started Go Long. We also cover why Go Long is addressing an unmet need in the wellness space. You all deserve something better and more bespoke than what is out in the marketplace!
I’d be grateful if you listened and passed on any feedback. Better yet, share with a friend!
Embracing the journey
A week ago, I authored a post around embracing the ‘suck’ in your journey. It referred to my experiences at work as well as in the gym that no one sees, yet contributes to positive results. I received a significant amount of feedback on how the post resonated and applies to other aspects of life.
YES, EXACTLY!
“Please put your oxygen mask on before helping others.” Yep, you know that phrase because you hear it anytime you take a flight. You're going to want to get your mask on and breathe so you can help your kids get their masks on. And if the masks are dropping out, some other crazy shit is happening that your kids may look to you for comfort on. Not being able to breathe gets in the way of that.
I’m going to talk about a friend’s daughter, who recently sent a thank you note as we sponsored her on one of her endeavors. This is one of those examples where you know that thank you note didn’t “just happen”. Significant coaching (aka parenting) was likely involved in this. When I mentioned it to my friend, she acknowledged the work that she put in. WOOHOO! But I’m guessing it was one of those many hard fought victories that go in life, particularly with parenting. [NOTE: I am not a parent.]
It made me think about how many parents ever celebrate those victories. If you’re a parent, do you ever take the time to high five yourself? Or is it more of a “survive and advance” mentality? Meaning “great, we got over this so what’s the next hurdle that needs to be overcome?”
Prioritize your mental health
We live in a world where most of us are very self-critical, which definitely has an impact on our mental health. And if our mental health is negatively affected, that is likely going to impact other aspects of our lives. It does for me. My sleep will be altered, which will then affect my ability to perform at work and in the gym, etc. You get the idea.
Imagine if you invested in yourself not just “taking the win”, but celebrating the win as well?
You know you did the work.
Do you want others to acknowledge it? Sure. We all want that on some level. But think about what could happen if you took some time to give yourself a pat on the back for doing the unseen work? Even better, you acknowledged this in the parking lot while waiting for one of your kids to finish practice.
Let's go one step further. Imagine if you started to do the "unseen work" for yourself. How would it feel to have the satisfaction of investing in yourself?
This has 2 benefits:
You feel better about yourself
You can show up better for others.
You have people who benefit from YOUR investment in THEM. Why wouldn't you make that same investment in yourself?
What's something you want to invest in for your own health?
What's stopping you?
I can help. Get in touch.
Have a great weekend!