Self-Care Tips For A Better Life (& Why You’re Putting It Off!)

By: Brad Krause, Contributing Blogger

You might not see it now, but self-care is crucial for helping you maintain your physical, emotional, social, and mental health. But despite the importance of putting yourself first, you might struggle to prioritize self-care. Today, we’ll take a quick look at a few ways to start caring for yourself now and touch on some of the excuses you may be using that are delaying your self-care plans.

4 Self-Care Actions That Can Change Your Life

Self-care does not look the same to everyone. However, we all share a common need to be emotionally content. Four self-care actions you may not have thought about that can help you live your best life include:

● Creating a Legacy Plan. Creating a legacy plan relieves emotional stress because you won’t have to worry about what happens to your loved ones or dreams after you die. By focusing on your holistic legacy, you can increase the meaning and purpose into your life. Contact Angelina Carleton to get started on your legacy strategy, vision and ideas.

● Changing Roles. If you’re unhappy with your place of work, whether remote or onsite, every other aspect of your life will be impacted as well. Consider looking for a new role that best aligns with your values and, importantly, brings you joy! If you can access seed capital consider starting your own business. If you need a tool that can assist you in creating your own marketing materials, you can use a PDF file converter to make sure all of your brochures, flyers, and newsletters are easy to email to your future email list of contacts.

● Cooking at Home. You already know that eating a healthy and balanced diet is important for your overall health. By learning how to cook at home, you’ll have complete control over what you eat, especially the ingredients, and you’ll ensure both you and your family are getting the nutrients you need. Cooking is a relaxing and enjoyable activity that brings your family together, allows you to be creative and unwind after long days. Sometimes the simplest things are the best!

● Overcoming your Fears. Fear is a huge barrier when it comes to self-care. But by facing and processing them, which might include fears of scarcity to not feeling equipped enough in today's day and age (never mind public speaking), you open yourself up to more nurturing opportunities to be kind in new areas of growth. Consider looking for a co-active coach or a therapist, which the TAPS blog asserts is someone with the right set of skills to help you overcome any past traumas and can guide you to living by your values compared to your fears.

What’s Holding You Back?

We’ve already touched on overcoming your fears as a way to remove self-care barriers. But there are many other reasons you might be putting off self-care. 2023 is your year to change that! Here are three things you might look for that are holding you back.

● Self-Neglect. You may not realize it, but you could be neglecting yourself in ways you never considered. Do you speak up for yourself when something is wrong? Are you compassionate to less than perfect versions of yourself? Do you skip out on time with friends and family? If so, you may be stuck in a self-neglect pattern.

● Guilt. There’s a common misconception that self-care is selfish. This is simply not true. Unfortunately, many people put off self-care because they think they should be doing something more “productive” or “important” for everyone else. The 'I Am Second' blog does a great job of explaining why you need to put yourself first. We give you permission to take care of yourself with both empathy and honor.

● Lack of Time. We all only have 24 hours each day, and many of us feel like we have to prioritize work, looking good, or keeping up with the Jones' with each tick-tock of the clock. Although it can be a challenge, give yourself at least 60 minutes each day to prioritize your own needs. If you don't know what they are, we invite you to take a deep breath and write them down.

Self-care is actually the least selfish thing that you can do. After all, you can’t pour from an empty cup. From changing jobs or starting your own business to identifying patterns of self-neglect, the tips in today’s blog can help you live your life on your own terms with self-care as a top priority.

No matter the self-sabotaging habits that can feel very comfortable, new best practices are allowed. One of them is designing your holistic legacy, no matter your age, as one more reason to wake up in the morning. Angelina Carleton can help you design that legacy plan through weekly co-active coaching and accountability sessions that will ensure you live from a place of balance and knowing your net worth isn't your only worth. Schedule your first conversation today by booking an online session.