Tag: oil change

Self-Care is NOT a Luxury, it’s Required Maintenance (1-27-21)

This is the final entry in our 2021 Reboot series.  We started by identifying our 1 word for the year.  Then, we reflected on our habits and processes to see if they would get us to where we want to go, and last week was about giving ourselves grace when we falter.  This week is about how self-care isn’t a luxury.

Pretend for a moment that you’re driving, and your oil change light comes on.  What do you do?  I assume that you get the oil changed sometime soon.  You might not do it immediately, but you’d get it changed.  Would you ever ignore the oil change light?  Would you ever keep driving miles and miles and miles, never changing the oil?  Do you know what happens if you don’t change the oil in a car?  It ruins the engine.  Everything locks up, and it’s extremely difficult to recover after that.

What does this have to do with anything?  In the above example, no one would say that changing the oil in the car is a luxury.  They would say it is an important part of maintenance to keep the car running.  I wish we did a better job of applying this thinking to self-care.  In many ways, I feel we have romanticized self-care as a luxury, a special treat to ourselves.  Over the past few years, I’ve shifted my thinking in this regard and realized that self-care isn’t a luxury, it’s necessary maintenance.  Can I ignore self-care for a period of time?  Yes, just like I can ignore the oil change light when it first comes on.  However, if I go too long without practicing self-care, my engine locks up.  I break down, and then it’s so hard to recover from that.  As a result, I’m making attempts to make self-care a priority in life.  For me, self-care looks like getting enough sleep, going on runs, getting outside at least once a day, working out, making sure I’m eating healthy on more days than not, going on walks, meditating daily, getting plenty of time with my family, and taking me time to read, write, or play video games.  I need these things to function at my best and to perform at a high level.  This isn’t a luxury, it’s a requirement.

Challenge for everyone: How are you practicing self-care in 2021?

Extra challenge for leaders in formal positions of authority- I admit it’s unfair, but so much of setting the standard on whether self-care is a luxury or a necessity is on YOUR shoulders.  Your actions shape the culture that makes it okay to stop working like a robot and start living like a human.  Let’s be real for a minute, we survived 2020, but I think it’s safe to assume that most people are still walking around with the check engine light on.   What actions are you doing to create space for self-care for your people?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Prioritization and Oil Changes (5-9-18)

This week I’d like to start a new series that encourages us to think about prioritization in different ways.  This week we will start off by thinking about prioritization and oil changes.

What I’m about to tell you is a completely true story.  My younger brother’s first car was a mustang convertible.  He got an awesome deal on the car, because the guy was in a rush to get rid of it (long story).  Now here is where the story goes downhill.  My younger brother absolutely ruined his first car.  Right about now, you’re probably assuming that he got into some kind of accident.  That’s not true.  He had the car for over 3 years, drove thousands of miles, and he NEVER changed the oil.  NEVER.  Eventually the engine just stopped working.  Without oil, it basically locked up and couldn’t move.  A family friend who has worked on race cards and demolition derby cars said it was the worst engine he had ever seen.  My brother had the means and the opportunity to change the oil, but he never made taking care of his car a priority.  Tell me this isn’t one of the dumbest things you’ve ever heard in your life.

You’re probably wondering where this is going.  Sometimes, I treat myself the same way my brother treated his mustang convertible.  Sometimes, I get so wrapped up in work, kids, and life, that I don’t make taking care of myself a priority.  During these times I don’t eat well.  I don’t exercise.  I don’t go to the doctor like I should.  I don’t rest and relax.  I don’t do the things I need to do to take care of me.  Do you ever fall into this trap?  Have you ever went a few weeks or a month and looked back to say, “Whoa, I’m not treating myself very well right now”?

Much like my brother, I have the means and the ability to take care of myself, but sometimes I just don’t make myself a priority.  Much like a car, my body is the thing that transports me around in this world, so if I don’t take care of it, everything else will suffer including my family, friends, and work.  I’ve found that the only way I can truly take care of myself is if I’m extremely deliberate about doing so.  For example, in order to take care of myself physically I’ve discovered I need to work toward achieving some kind of goal.  Usually, I sign up to run a race, which will put me on a schedule to eat relatively healthy and work out on a scheduled basis.  I need to be deliberate about taking care of myself in other ways too.  I make a concentrated effort to put away my phone when I’m outside of work, so it’s out of sight and out of mind.  I have to create boundaries, so I can put work down in order to enjoy some free time.  If I’m not deliberate, I won’t take care of myself and sooner or later I find myself locking up like my brother’s engine.

The challenge: Are you prioritizing the time to take care of yourself?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry