Winning in 2018: The Importance of A Self-Care Plan

It’s 2018, and as the first month of the already not-so-new year has wrapped up, we are all trying our best to stay on track with our resolutions. On January first we set our plans into motion. Hopefully, by the 21st the new actions became habits, and by the 31st it was smooth sailing toward your year of [insert whatever goal or achievement will make you great].

But as you go about taking care of business for an epic 2018, what is your plan to take care of you?

You need self-care to get there

Over the weekend, I retreated to a brunch with some amazing young people who have been making my world a lot more bearable. It felt incredible to be around such talented young people who are so dedicated to bringing their life visions to reality. In the midst of a conversation about our 2018 vision boards, the subject of rest came up.

Now, anyone who knows me knows that self-care is my thang, and let’s just say I was more than happy to ramble on about the subject. I realized that in developing our goals, listing our ambitions, and crafting our achievement maps for the year, very few of us include a self-care plan. In fact, we tend to neglect self-care until our minds or our bodies literally give up on us.

We carefully put together our goals and objectives and the tasks that will get us there, but very few of us have mapped out how we intend taking care of ourselves on the road to “there.”

Nurture yourself for sustained success

Growing up, my siblings and I used to joke about how long it took our father to get dressed. The running joke was that we had to make sure to get in the bathroom before Daddy because once he entered, it was a WRAP.

My father is a very busy businessman who has been hustling these global streets for 40 years. Turns out that his prolonged morning routine is his way of slowing down his otherwise crazy day. By painstakingly completing his grooming needs, he is able to check in with his thoughts and have some moments of silence and tranquility before the demands of his day take over.

And this time is non-negotiable — it is an intricate part of his morning, to the point that he will wake up extra early on the days he has early appointments to make sure that his daily routine of unhurried physical and spiritual manscaping is never interrupted.

What this illustrates is that my daddy is a self-care king, but I also think it suggests that there is a link between self-care and success. I sincerely believe that part of the reason my dad has been able to sustain himself as a successful businessman has a lot to do with his dedication to creating moments of stillness in the morning during which he is able to restart and effectively own his day.

And it’s not just my opinion — studies have shown that individuals and corporations that prioritize well-being are more sustainably productive. By anticipating the toll that work will take on our physical and emotional selves, we can better prepare ourselves to tackle whatever struggles we are bound to encounter as goal diggers.

Also, when we plan ahead, we are more likely to stay consistent. With this in mind, I challenge you to develop a self-care plan of your own.

It’s all about you!

Take a sheet of paper and map out your specific issues and needs, dividing them into spiritual, emotional, psychological, physical, social, or work-related categories.

After you have listed your needs, begin to think of ways to address them. For instance, if your needs assessment picks up that you are constantly tired, you may want to come up with a plan for improving your sleep, such as turning off your phone for a weekend of uninterrupted rest.

Self-care plans do not have to be super lofty or complex either. Adding a low-key monthly lunch date with cool people who lift your spirits may suffice. Once you have an idea of the things you can do to maintain your mental well-being, put the plan somewhere you can see it every day.

Take time to assess any possible obstacles, and be realistic! It takes time to develop habits. Stick to your plan and practice your self-care activities as faithfully as possible, making sure to check in with yourself once a month, and later every three months, until your routine sticks. After some time, come back and complete your needs assessment again to ensure that your self-care plan keeps up with you over time.