If there was only one thing I could tell you as a family business leaders, it would be this:
You are your company's most important asset – and you need to be maintaining and supporting that asset accordingly.
Think of it this way. You can't drive your car for an infinite number of miles without ever changing the oil or rotating the tires. There’s a maintenance schedule that's required, right?
As Family Business Leaders, we are no different.
But instead of maintenance, it’s called “self-care.” :)
Just as essential as an oil change or tire rotation – but self-care is not always as clear & straight forward.
Much to the chagrin of every new parent, humans don’t come with a user manual. We have to learn, adapt, & evolve as we go. And caring for ourselves (because that’s what self-care really comes down to) at any given point or season of life is highly personalized and varied.
And, it is also a thing that I think a lot of us have misconceptions about – because so much of what we’re being told is (or sold as) self- care is actually beautifying. Everything from pedicures to scented candles is being labeled & marketed as self-care. And while I’m not against any of those things (Heaven knows I love a good scented candle!) We’re missing the mark just a bit when we only call these lovely little items “self-care.”
It’s like this.
I love the free car wash that I get when I take my car in to get the oil changed and the tires rotated. I love when they vacuum all the crumbs out of the back seat and it comes out looking all shiny and new.
But. The carwash is not why I'm getting the car serviced.
And if they were to just wash my car and then give it right back to me to continue driving, without actually caring for the car’s needs fully & completely, eventually that clean & sparkly car would end up burned out & broken down on the side of the road somewhere.
The beautifying stuff is lovely – but in order to keep us running in a sustainable & supportive way, we also need the deeper stuff. We need to get under the hood and get our hands dirty sometimes. We need to get our fundamental needs met.
And – sometimes that’s just hard to market!
Sometimes self-care isn’t sexy.
Sometimes it's taking an hour and actually getting some stuff done on your to-do list. Sometimes it’s going to a therapy appointment or finally visiting the dentist.
Sure, we can also enjoy the pedicured & scented candles – I even recommend using them to help sweeten some of those less-than-sexy-tasks – but we need to remember that it’s not a substitute for the actual deep care that needs to be done.
It’s also important to remember that deep self-care looks different for every person.
We are all deeply unique individuals running uniquely different companies – with different structures & different ways of operating – so our needs as business owners and the leaders are also very different.
As such, it's important for us to define what it is that we need for ourselves.
And that can feel challenging sometimes.
Working at the pace of business, we like to find “the right solution” as quickly as possible.
We get frustrated & impatient when we’re not sure what to do first.
Trust me, I’ve been there a thousand times.
First, I want to invite us all to take a deep, deep breath.
I mean the deepest breath you’ve taken all day.
Do it now.
Well done. You just got an A+. ;)
And now, we can just let ourselves begin being in the process of exploring, trying, and refining our own self-care for ourselves – without any pressure because we already have that A+ for those deep breaths, remember? :)
This way takes a little bit longer, but ultimately it is so much more sustainable because it actually suits us, our energy, and our business. We're not trying to recreate something that has worked for someone else because what we’re ultimately going for is sustainable change – change that will support our longevity as a leader and ultimately the longevity of our business as well.
Because (say it with me this time)
YOU are your company's most important asset – it’s time to invest accordingly.
Want to learn more about how to start building a sustainable self-care practice?
Check out Episodes 13 & 14 of the Legacy: Navigating Family Business podcast (www.thelegacyevolution.com/podcast)
Or book a discovery call to learn more about my work (https://www.thelegacyevolution.com/book-a-discovery-call) because getting the support you need (coaching, mentorship, & energy work) is vital self care -- not just for you but also for your business!
What kind of support do you need to move to the next level?
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