by Adapt Training and Development
It’s a New Year!
People often have mixed feelings about New Year’s resolutions, but there is something about the start of a new year that feels like a natural time to reflect on our habits and possibly make some changes. When it comes to self-care, we might generally have a pretty solid program, but things may have lapsed a bit over the holidays. The start of a new year is a great time to think about what we are doing, what is working well, and if there are any areas that would benefit from a re-boot.
A training put on by Advocates for Human Potential shared some good suggestions for reflecting on our self-care routine.
It might sound like the worst idea in the world to wake up earlier. Why would you wake up earlier when you could sleep an extra hour? As absurd as it sounds, there is some science behind this shift in routine.
- Fuel – What are the things that fill your bucket? What can help you re-set or give you more energy and enthusiasm? A particular form of exercise, meditation or spiritual practice, a creative activity, or a regular meet-up with a friend could be considered fuel.
- Structure – How will you set up your life to build in time for the thing(s) that fuel you? This is about being intentional and scheduling time for the things that nourish you—much as you would schedule a doctor’s appointment or a meeting. We might tell ourselves we will “find time” for exercise, for example, but somehow our good intentions fall by the wayside. Our chances of success will improve if we get specific about structuring our time—such as, “I’m going on a 30 minute walk after work 4 days each week.”
- Boundaries – What will you do when life inevitably interferes and pushes on the structure you created? Boundaries could be about saying “no” (or the softer “I wish I could”) to requests to do things during the time you’ve set aside to fuel. Boundaries can also mean deciding that your self-care is a priority and shouldn’t be the first thing that falls off your list when you get busy.
Wishing you a healthy and happy New Year