SELF-CARE, it’s on the tip of everyone’s lips lately and if you’re “WOKE” you have probably said it once or twice. Let’s examine the term for a moment. Wikipedia defines SELF-CARE in it’s first sentence as “ In health care, self-care is any necessary human regulatory function which is under individual control, deliberate and self-initiated.” Now I’m no Wiki worshiper but this is a very good definition.
Human’s need constant management, both physically and mentally in order to survive. General physical care falls under your health care provider but when you are self employed you might not get general care and you can forget about a self-care toolkit. So… what is this toolkit you speak of? Tool kits in general are created to help you manage NOUNS (people, places, and things). If you’re self employed and have no self-care toolkit you will certainly burn out quickly.
I started a small company at a very young age. I regret very little as the years have gone by with the exception of not talking to a life coach about self-care and how to truly manage my life. Fast forward 19 years and I have become ruthless about my self-care routine. The world at large can be pretty harsh and I need to take care of myself in that harsh environment. Forbes created a list of 10 best self-care habits but there are some things that were not mentioned or elaborated on:
1. Buy General Healthcare Insurance and Create a Work Out Routine:
I am not kidding when I tell you that this is very important. I have gotten hurt TWICE on the job and the company I work for couldn’t care less. No really… THEY DON’T CARE. Even if you can only afford the minimum, just get some general health care. Also, create a REAL workout routine. This part became hard for me and it’s because I fell short on “LIFE DETOX”, more on that shortly. If you live in the USA and make under $25,000 per year you might qualify for free or low cost health care. I hate the gym with a passion so I ride a bike and workout at home using weights and YouTube videos. Don’t Knock it, it works!
2. Work Remotely When Possible:
Before I started the new year, me and my partner planned out a work vacation. I worked on the beaches of Miami and I couldn’t be more thankful. When I work for companies and organizations sometimes I will take a lower pay rate in order to maintain location flexibility while providing services. I’m very open to admitting that I’m no good at the “Office Life” mainly because you have to deal with everyone’s personal personalities, good and bad. When you change up where you work you allow yourself space from the rat race.
3. Go Through a Yearly Life Detox:
This is very hard to do because you need to grab a cup of coffee, sit with a pen and paper, and make a list of unnecessary “NOUNS” that are making you sick. Believe it or not, people, places, and things can actually make you very sick. If you feel nervous, angry, scared, paranoid, jealous, or hurt while connected to these NOUNS place them on a list and give yourself a time frame for release. You need to get rid of this in order to function as a normal human. It will be hard and sometimes really painful to do but you won’t succeed in life until you do this.
4. Don’t Turn Off Social Media, TURN OFF YOUR PHONE COMPLETELY:
Technology is not always our friend. We are attacked constantly by emails and notifications. Turn off your phone and take a walk. You don’t have to do it all day. If you have office hours, give out your company number and have that number screen and collect your phone calls when you are off duty. I made the mistake of giving out my personal number and I will never do that again. You want to believe that people understand what boundaries are… BUT THEY DON’T! Put in the face time at work and then turn off your phone.
I hope this helps everyone understand some of the basic tools one might need in their SELF-CARE toolkit. It might look differently for some people but this is exactly what I needed in order to bring my life into true focus.
