Mint Julep, our new 10 pound Jack-Chi, is teaching me more than I could ever imagine. One of the unexpected lessons that I’ve learned through dog ownership came during a veterinary visit. Our vet shared with us that teeth brushing is a must. As a small dog, Julep has sensitive teeth that will likely fall out prematurely if we don’t brush them daily. Just like human teeth, the vet explained, getting a professional cleaning every 6 months is insufficient if it’s not paired with daily brushing. It hit me then that this daily practice of caring for Julep’s teeth (and my own I suppose) is a metaphor for self care practice.
As someone who tends to work hard and then go on a full relaxation vacation 1-2 times a year, I’m not so good at the daily practice of relaxation. I save it up for those biannual occasions. But what I’m realizing is that overtime, only relaxing 1-2 times a year is not sufficient for my health—just as only cleaning Julep’s teeth every 6 months is not sufficient for her health. What’s important is that we find daily ways to bring self care into our routines.
On the subject of self care, I’ve been struggling to balance the ways that Growing into Power is, well, growing, through workshops and other projects I’m working on, while maintaining content for the blog. Part of the struggle has been finding the time to reflect on how to expand what I’m doing. Therefore, I’ve decided that what I need to do is to make room for making change. I’m stepping back in order to take a bigger step forward. To this end, I’ll be posting articles on my blog once a week. One of the new projects I’ve been wanting to explore are Growing into Power Worksheets—downloadable forms with prompts, checklists and other activities to guide you through preparing for your toughest career dilemmas. These are coming soon—as well as more workshops and opportunities to help you become a more self aware leader. Remember, check in on Mondays or subscribe below to never miss a post.