Make time for yourself
I read a small post by my colleague today reminding me to make time for myself. As of tomorrow, I'm taking the first break longer than a few days for a very long time. To be honest, it's been so long that I don't know what 'making time for myself' even means these days! I talk a lot about mental health on my podcast and in posts here on LinkedIn, but I'm not sure I'm taking care of mine. I often fall asleep thinking about what's on tomorrow, and when I wake up, I grab my phone and check my email. This can't be good.
This last year or two have been difficult for many people - we all know that. Have you ever thought about what the gift of free time could be used for? Here's my list of free-time activities.
Breathe
When sitting at my desk or in meetings, I tend to breathe shallow and slowly. I don't put a lot of thought into breathing. Sometimes, if I'm particularly engaged in something, I "forget to breathe" and suddenly inhale, gasping for air.
I would like to be more present with my breathing during the break. Inhale, hold and exhale. I want to explore a few YouTube videos like Wim Hof, for example.
Exercise
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I regularly visited the gym. Since starting my own company, I've prioritised work over staying fit.
I intend to walk more with my dogs, and I'd like to continue my boxing practice. I think that's a simple start,
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Learn
I've heard that when you stop learning, you stop living. I've been really stagnant for the past year or two and haven't learned anything new. I even let my Duolingo subscription expire because I wasn't using it.
I'd like to use this time to learn something new. I don't know what yet; maybe I'll just work on improving my Japanese.
I know this all sounds really simple. These are things that I've neglected this past year or so, and I think it will make a real difference if I use this time to re-engage.
What are you looking forward to?
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Michael Lobb works tirelessly to help clients solve business problems using technology and heads up a team of developers, designers and miscellaneous nerds at Teamscāl. In his spare time, he likes long walks in the park with his dogs, Chappie and Pocky.
Good to hear this! Breath, exercise, learn and don't forget to enjoy yourself as well. It's your time now!
Konnichiwa Michael son, All of what you have listed I do daily now, I ramped up my own internal practices a couple of years ago and although it has been confronting I am better for it. One of the problems I see that we have all created for ourselves is this notion we need to break before we put in time for ourselves. Society can have a very alluring pull on it if we let it. Everyone talks about mental health but how many put the time into a daily, hourly, weekly practice? Or worse yet we ask someone once a year Are you OK on a specific day... sheesh!!! Happy to hear you are taking time for you, I will also do the same but its much easier now for me as its ingrained in me as BEING ME.