It’s obvious that I’m a do-er. I do. A lot. I get the proverbial “sh*t” done.
But while I’m passionate, there’s a risk to the way I roll, and it’s called burnout. Surrounded by germs on campus, early mornings, late nights, stress … it can easily take a toll.
This term I’m making an even more conscious effort to take care of myself. This includes:
- Continuing to abstain from drugs and alcohol (I’m coming up on 10 years sober)
- Morning prayer and gratitude lists
- Training for “races” (all of which have been in the rain so far!)
- Going to the gym and hot yoga class whenever possible (and carving out additional time to do this)
- Spending quiet time with my kids (reading, board games)
- Taking about 11 million hot baths
- Continuing to cut back on caffeine (‘half-caff’ to the rescue)
- Trashy TV when possible
- Chocolate
The next question for me has been, what can I drop?
I recently had to back out of hosting experiences with Kudoz, a really cool initiative in the city. I simply can’t find time in my schedule to do this well. While I have a lot to give, it’s important that I take this time to give to myself.
I don’t know how successful I’m going to be, but this post is one way I can hold myself accountable that health is the cornerstone of me, and I need to be well to meet my commitments.
I’m genuinely curious – what do all you folks do to keep it going? What ball do you need to let drop? Let me know in the comments.
In the meantime I’m going to dedicate this post to Molly and the other students this term who’ve dropped my class, because they needed to. Sometimes quitting is the best option!
Tourism Nerd 