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Positively_Lisa

Why you need a *system* for self-care...

Published about 1 month ago • 1 min read

Hi Reader

If you're like me, you have the best of intentions when it comes to planning out self-care. You promise yourself you'll do things like journal, walk, or hydrate and you are so excited to start! But let me ask you this...have you made that self-care plan only to watch it fall apart as soon as life got busy? One urgent deadline, one bad night of sleep, and suddenly all those good intentions disappear along with any benefits the self-care had to offer. Ugh.

The reason this happens is because a plan is fragile. It assumes life will go smoothly, and we both know it absolutely doesn't. The answer? Skip the plan and design a system.

What helps instead is thinking in terms of systems. Systems remove the friction, reduce the number of decisions you have to make, and make the healthy choice the easy choice.

If you want to create a self-care system, consider these four elements:

  1. Environment: Put your tools where you’ll use them. Keep a book by your bed, water on your desk, sneakers by the door.
  2. Triggers: Use reminders and habit stacking. Pair your self-care with something you already do.
  3. Support: Add accountability. A friend, a coach, or even a reminder app can help.
  4. Flexibility: Have a baseline and a bonus. Five minutes counts as much as 45, because both keep the habit alive.

Self-care isn’t about perfection, it’s about creating a system that adapts with you.

If you’d like to go deeper into why plans fail and how systems succeed, and how to develop a system to support you best, be sure to check out this week’s episode of the Positively Living® Podcast.

>> Listen to the podcast here​
>> Read the blog post here​

Here's to a system of self-care that elevates your life.
​
♥
Lisa

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Positively_Lisa

Compassionate Productivity Strategist for Creatives + Caregivers

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