Taking the time for your own daily self-care is vital and should not be seen as a luxury.
Most of us have a hard time balancing taking care of ourselves plus taking care of our family and business responsibilities. It’s easy to lose track of our own needs as we give ourselves to the people, family, pets, and places we love. However, it is essential to their well-being that we take care of ourselves, filling our own wells with water so that we have something to offer when we return home each day.
It is easy to get caught up in the demands of business and home life, because they never stop. There is always one more thing you can do, another dish in the sink, or another person who needs your help.
If you don’t set some boundaries, you will find yourself on an endless journey of housework and doing for others. Eventually, you will end up feeling drained, resentful and out of touch with your inner self. Instead of waiting for this to happen, integrate self-care into your daily schedule. Even Buddha insisted that he have one hour completely to himself every day.
Try to set aside a full hour per day for yourself. I try to wake up an hour earlier in the morning and give myself a “Power Hour” This consists of the following: –
20 minutes of meditation
20 minutes of inspirational reading
20 minutes of exercise
It is done in this order, as it is important not to exercise before the meditation.
Some mornings I do not do the exercise, but rather do it in the late afternoon, which gives me a good break from sitting at my desk all day. I always start my day with meditation and some inspirational reading, as this gets me balanced and focused and my day starts off with positive intentions.
During the day, you can practice short self-care breaks outside of the home or office taking short walks and getting away from your tasks or job at hand. As the saying goes: “Stop and smell the roses”, just giving your attention to the small wonders of nature around you. This can be a great stress reliever and time out from your current duties.
In the same way, taking care of yourself is a natural complement to taking care of your home, family and business.
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