MUST-READ: 5 THINGS YOU SHOULD STOP NOW FOR YOUR SANITY
We’re not halfway into the year yet and it seems like the world has gone insane. Between the locust invasion in East Africa, Coronavirus spreading rapidly across the world and climate change, it’s easy to be anxious and stressed. If you are looking to reduce stress, here are a few things you should consider letting go of for your own sanity. GET THE NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW SENT TO YOUR INBOX 1. Dwelling on the past Moving on can be difficult, especially if you are holding on to something that cuts deep down. However, holding on to hurt will not help you heal or change the past. It’s better to focus on what you can change – yourself. Your past doesn’t define you. Treat your mistakes are lessons and use them to grow. How do you move on? Accept that whatever happened can’t be changed, forgive yourself and others and grow from the experience. 2. Social media comparison It’s not a myth that social media can affect your mental health. In a world of curated perfection, it’s easy to constantly feel anxious. Be thankful for how far you’ve gone and work to ensure that many doors of opportunities open for me. 3. Over-Scheduling If you are taking on so much that you feel like you are stretching yourself beyond your limits, you might be suffering from ‘yes’ syndrome. Constantly saying “yes” without thinking or checking whether things fit with your goals is unhealthy. It’ll leave you constantly busy with little productivity. To break this habit, focus on your priorities. To check yourself, here are a few questions to ask yourself before you say yes: Will it stop me from having time for me? Am I saying “yes” because I feel bad or guilty? Will saying “yes” delay me or lead me closer to my goals? Am I automatically saying “yes” without thinking about it? Will saying “yes” stop me from relaxing, having fun and spending quality time with family and friends? 4. Not auditing my circle While forming relationships is important, you need to manage your inner circle personally and professionally. For instance, if you have close friends who don’t support and push you to become the best version of yourself, it’s time to take a look and ask – “Who am I associating myself with?” Whether you are networking up, down or sideways, always focus on maintaining relationships that build you up. 5. Not practicing self-care Even computers need sleep. Even the most effective systems in the world need a rest period. The human body works the same way. When you push your body to its limits without getting rest, there are very serious health consequences – I’ve been there. If you are running a chaotic schedule, integrate breaks into your schedule, book regular checkups with your doctor to hold yourself accountable, and make time to do the things you enjoy. Join a class of ambitious women who are networking and learning how to grow their careers. Sign up for the Motherland Mogul Insider program.
Busy yet fit: The urban woman’s guide to staying fit in a fast paced world
I guess congratulations are in order as it seems I found the title of my first book above! ? Okay, jokes apart, it’s a new year and while I’m not really one who makes resolutions at the beginning of the year, I believe that the feeling of newness that comes with the season can help us re-route to living better in all areas. As a wife and mom who runs more than one gig (even though one is a fitness center), I find it really hard to stick with a specific routine when it comes to exercise and I’m sure I’m not alone. Lord knows the hustle is real right? True! But on the other hand, it’s only when we are in good health that the hustle can really make sense. So I’m going to share 3 ways you can fit in exercise into your busy schedule. 1. Treat it as an appointment: Yes, when you intentionally prioritize your health and wellness, you will set out time to do what you need to do. I set alarms to exercise at night because that’s when it’s most convenient for me. Trust me, you don’t need so much time to get your heart pumping and your muscles warm. You can start with as little as 10 minutes and increase it when you can. My company recently launched a product, Fitfam exercise games™ cards that encourages busy people like you to exercise anytime, anywhere and have fun while at it. 2. Make more active choices: I know the “take the stairs not the elevator” rhyme sounds cliché, but it’s true. If you are too busy to hit the gym, the best you can do is to deliberately make active choices throughout the day. Take the stairs, ditch the intercom and the intranet if possible and walk to your colleague’s desk to make that inquiry. If you run a business, try to move around your office or shop too, don’t be the madam who just sits on the chair directing everyone else around. 3. Don’t dwell on it too much: Am I contradicting myself? No. Here’s what I mean. Sometimes we dwell so much on failure, we refuse to move forward. You missed two days of exercise, okay. Move on and don’t miss the third. You gorged down half a box of pizza and 3 sparkling glasses on Friday night, not good but can we just move on with a salad and grilled chicken on Saturday morning? I hope these 3 tips will help you get more active this year as we get set to smash those money and life goals. Interested in contributing for She Leads Africa? Click here.
Stress what??? Here are 4 ways to practice Self-Care
“Wake up, hustle and grind. The hustle never stops. I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” Few words make me tremble like the ones above. Back when I was a Bachelors’ student in university, I had colleagues who spoke that way. Every time I hear such words, I would panic. Surely, if others were ready to put off sleep until when they died, I didn’t want it bad enough. I definitely was not willing or able to sacrifice my sleep for my academic success? This was bad. Fast forward four years later, and I am thinking about these words, as I write this article on self-care. What comes to mind is this: Self-care should come before anything else. How can one produce the best of themselves, if they are tired, both emotionally and physically The world around us seems to frown upon downtime. We need to go and go fast, in everything we do. It is our duty, however, not to forget our health and well-being. Here are a few ways to do so. Sleep Sleep is not laziness. It is one of the most important and basic acts to take care of one’s self. Any attempt to simply dismiss sleep as laziness feels like a statement that seems to say, I am putting well-being second and success (whatever that may be) first. Society hasn’t always taught us how to take care of ourselves, but you gotta start now! Accept your emotions Back in 2015, during one of the heights of my frustrations and social anxiety, I started practicing yoga. Yoga with Adrienne, on YouTube, to be precise. If I learned anything, it is this: Let yourself be. What we often do, when we are sad, overwhelmed, tired, angry, is judge ourselves about feeling a certain way, thus adding an extra layer of discomfort and unhappiness without even realizing it. Self-care is letting yourself be. Self-care is being gentle with yourself, feeling an emotion, and not judging yourself for feeling a certain way. In a Supersoul Conversation with Oprah, Caroline Myss, American writer, added that a critical step to finding a purpose was letting go of the judgment we hold of our lives. Do what you need to do to preserve your peace While Instagram and social media are highly criticized in general, it has some amazing uses, one of which is finding your self-care/uplifting girl gang! That’s how I discovered Alex Elle. Through her “Hey, girl!” podcast and Instagram posts, author and storyteller, Alex Elle encourages us to take care of ourselves first. On several occasions, I felt like she was talking directly to me, giving me a piece of advice I needed to conquer the day. This week the message was this one: [bctt tweet=”Loving yourself fully may require loving people from a distance – Alex Elle” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Do what is necessary to take care of yourself first. Throughout her exchanges with us, Alex asks an important question: What does self-care look like to you? What does it look like to YOU? Be full of yourself – its okay! Yes, my beautiful ladies, Oprah reminds us that it’s not a bad thing to be full of yourself! She says “I’m full, I’m flowing, my cup runneth over” with love, for herself. It is important here to note that loving yourself is a self-care ritual that doesn’t happen overnight. It is also one of the hardest and worthiest of causes. If not the worthiest. Self-care can also be, learning to love yourself every single day, flaws and all, and forgiving yourself when things don’t go according to “plan”. What does self-care look like to you? Asking for help? Taking a bath? Sleep? Super Soul Conversations? Therapy? Blogging? For me, it is a combination of many things, one of which is therapy, as I maneuver around being a socially anxious black girl. Bisous xx If you’d like to get featured on our Facebook page, click here to share your story with us.