In my last blog post, You Have Today, I said I’d share Tom Rath’s three challenges that he shared at the 2017 Gallup® CliftonStrengths® Summit. Today’s challenge is focused on our own wellbeing and why we need to put our own wellbeing first. Rath provides three areas. I’m including the bookend areas from my own personal beliefs.
Rath Challenge #1: Put your own health and wellbeing first for the sake of helping others.
“Small choices lead to big changes!” – Tom Rath
In order for us to be our best for others, we need to be well. If we don’t take care of ourselves first, we can’t expect to have what it takes to serve others.
There are five areas I’m going to share with you:
- God First
- Eat
- Move
- Sleep
- Be Grateful
Let’s get started because these small changes really can lead to be big changes.
God First
I believe God is integrated into every part of our life whether we acknowledge that or not. For me, this means He has to come first.
Be the Change, Yes You Can is my second most popular post. I recommend you read it. It’s a true story that began in August 2015 when I began to give God my first.
Here’s what I believe:
We have to give the first of our day to God. The Bible actually instructs us to do that in Matthew 6:33.
Seek first the Kingdom of God, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
This means first thing every morning, before you even shower, okay, you can go to the bathroom, but then read His Word, pray and talk with Him, establish understanding of Him, memorize His Word (I’m struggling with this one, but I keep trying), write in a journal to process what you’re reading and experiencing in life (this actually helps our brain).
Give God your first each day. I promise He’ll make sure everything else you need that day will happen, even your shower. Yes, you do have time to put God first. It doesn’t have to be a two-hour session. Start with 10 minutes. While you drink your cup of coffee or your first glass of water, read His Word, pray, ask Him to be with you in your day, and jot down a sentence or two to mark what you focused on with God.
Eat, Move, Sleep
I’m very excited about a book I just purchased last week. I’ve already read eight chapters, which has only solidified my passion for focusing on my own wellbeing. Eat, Move, Sleep by Tom Rath is phenomenal.
Okay, you should buy this book and start implementing some of his practical applications. I already have.
To make this purchase easy, all you have to do is click on the book title and you’ll go directly to Amazon. No searching required. Then you can buy and read it too. Seriously, Rath’s Eat, Move, Sleep is full of practical, easy-to-do things to improve your chances of living a long and healthy life.
Here’s just a couple of great ideas taken directly from his book:
Eat
Rath: “Ask yourself if the next food you put in your mouth is a net gain or a net loss.”
Michelle: I’ve done the Whole30 four times in the last two years. Each time I experience an improvement in my weight, sleep, and energy. I’m currently doing the Whole30 program again for a couple of weeks to get myself back on track. Eating healthy foods has improved my wellbeing.
Rath: “Don’t forget to drink lots of water.”
Michelle: This is another one I’m struggling with too. One equation I’ve used to measure how much water I should drink daily is take my weight divided by two. That number is the number of ounces I need to drink each day. You can do your own math for what your body needs daily to maintain best hydration for you.
Move
Rath: “Inactivity now kills more people than smoking.”
“Identify one way you can work without sitting, right now.”
Michelle: Walking counts! Sitting all day doesn’t. Just sayin’. I believe there’s some form of exercise we each can enjoy. No excuses for saying you can’t find an exercise you like. There’s plenty of different forms of exercises. Even dancing while doing dishes is exercise. I’m currently making sure I get at least 10,000 steps daily.
Sleep
Rath: “One less hour of sleep does not equal an extra hour of achievement or enjoyment.”
“Gradually add sleep to your nightly schedule in 15-minute increments.”
Michelle: Okay, I’m guilty on this one, but Rath’s research convicted me. Last week I began going to bed earlier. I’m a night owl, but when I stay up too late, I’m so groggy in the morning, which makes it difficult to focus on God’s Word first thing in the morning. I like staying up late, but I know it’s not helping me stay healthy getting less than the 8 hours I need.
Be Grateful
Be grateful. Thank someone each day. Tell others, including God, how much you appreciate and notice them. Be grateful for people and things. Every night before going to sleep I thank God. I thank Him for the multitude of awesome people He’s put in my life. I even thank Him for my pillow and my bed. I really like these two items. 🙂
Embrace a grateful heart, you’ll be surprised how much your own heart gets a needed jolt of energy when you show gratitude.
Final Encouragement
Again, I struggle with these five areas too, but I also continually work at enforcing these boundaries in my life with the goal of establishing my own wellbeing in order to serve God and others to the best of my ability.
If that means I have to cut back on sugar, then I need to choose not to have the fabulous birthday treat sometimes.
If being my best means I have to get up and walk every 30 minutes during my day at work then I may need to set an alarm to remind myself it’s time to move. I can’t sit all day at work and expect to be my best.
If that means I need to go to bed at 9 p.m. because I plan to get up at 5 a.m. and spend time with God, then I need to turn the lights out at 9 p.m.
No one else is going to do this for me. No one else is going to do this for you either.
We have to find new ways to live a healthy life. What we choose to eat matters. How much we sleep matters. How active we are matters. We only have one body, one life to live in this world. We have to put our own wellbeing first, or we won’t be our best for others.
Remember to bookend your days with God Himself and you’ll be a healthier you for doing so.
Let’s start putting our own health and wellbeing first for the sake of helping others.
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