Take care of yourself. Love yourself. Treat your mind and body well.
These concepts are easier said than done especially for Millennials and Gen Xers who were raised in the hustle culture (the idea that you can only succeed by exerting yourself at max capacity, day in and day out). While we were raised to hustle harder, compete, take no days off, rise and grind, and stay ready so we don’t have to get ready, we still need to take care of ourselves. Self-care is essential in everyday life if you want to remain balanced!
Here are three things that are perfect to include into your routine because they’re simple and practical enough to stick to everyday and are instant mood boosters. This is important because it’s crucial to remember: hustle culture fills the world with tension, so you’ll need something to relieve the stress in order to avoid a burnout.
1. Meditate
Meditation. There is no better way to start your morning than with meditation. Consistent meditation will mentally change you and your mindset for the better. I love to mediate in the morning because it’s a perfect way to clear my mind and start my day open minded and completely free from emotionally-clouded judgment.
Mediation aids in grounding you and helps you live in the moment rather than being fixated on the past or future. Too much of our energy is often wasted in focusing on the future or reminiscing the past, and that causes the present to pass us by!
Meditation helps you be present in the ‘here and now, truly letting you experience and appreciate the present moment. This is important because in hustle culture we can often lose sight of the present moments because our undivided attention is on the near, if not, distant future.
2. Practice Self-Affirmations
Self-confidence is something a lot of women struggle with, some more than they’d like to admit. Having a high self-esteem will help you avoid burnouts because it teaches you the most important lesson of all: you have to be your own number one supporter in life because of the competition that hustle culture creates in all aspects of life. Michael Korda once said, “If you don’t believe in yourself, then who will believe in you?”
Self-affirmations are a quick and great way to help boost your self-esteem. You don’t have to get too deep and personal if that’s not your style. Just look yourself in the mirror everyday and tell yourself how great you are. A simple “I’m a boss” will suffice- just make sure to let yourself know that “you got this” because a little reassurance goes a long way.
This shouldn’t be hard because I’ll let you guys in on a little secret: you all have great things to offer to the world, and you just have to learn to acknowledge and appreciate the traits that make you, you.
Sometimes it’s hard to see and appreciate the good things we have to offer but look at it this way: It’s possible for us to pour our love and appreciation into others because we see the potential and beauty they radiate. Just as we see it in them, we possess that same greatness ourselves.
I guarantee you once you start to place that same encouragement and support into yourself like you effortlessly do for others, your life will drastically change. Self-affirmations promote self-love and self love is the best love. More importantly self-love is the most important type of love because the relationship you have with yourself sets the tone for all the relationships in your life.
3. Vacation
Go on a vacation everyday. Hear me out, it doesn’t have to be a long road trip, a fancy cruise, or even a day trip for that matter, but take a vacation everyday.
When you’re on vacation, it’s a time where you relax and reset. Lucky for you, the world is a beautiful place, and there’s a vacation to be found every day. Living in the city, it’s especially hard not to get wrapped up in the busy lifestyle, and it’s hard not falling in a one-track mindset you get from always being on the go.
So, taking a vacation everyday is essential to keeping a peace of mind. Vacations are something that relax and refresh you, so it can be as simple as: taking a walk, exploring a new area, watching the sunset, or even coloring. Although, if you do go for an indoor activity like reading or coloring, I suggest taking it outside! Being outside is a great way to realize and appreciate the beauty and uniqueness every day has to offer. If not outside, in a new place- it’s always good to switch things up.
Vacations are possible to take everyday, so do it! It’s truly as simple as stopping to smell the roses or in other words slowing down and opening your eyes to the ever-present beauty of daily life that surrounds us.