Teresa is calling a time-out on your life. You’ve just gone throuhg a period where you stretched yourself so thin for other people that you’re feeling drained. In fact, you’re n the verge of burning yourself out! This is very dangerous teritory - and if you don’t get some personal insurance, you’re going to pay the price.
You may feel like you’ve been accomplishing quite a bit. Like your days are filled with useful tasks and your to-do list is getting ticked off more often than not. But, do you really feel ike you’re getting somewhere in your own life? Or have you just been working towards fulfilling other people’s expectations and dreams?
It’s very easy to get caught up in helping others. Almost too easy. And sure, being of service to others is a nobel thing to do. But if you end up neglecting your own needs, you are going to run out of energy - and that’s going to affect your ability to keep helping others. So today it’s time to look at the personal insurance policies you follow in your day-to-day life.
You are in charge of your own life. Even though it might not seem like it, you have the last say in what you do or don’t do with your time. You are your own boss. And it’s up to you to make sure that all your personal needs are met.
Sure, it’s nice to believe that the people that you take care of will take care of you when you eed them to. But you can’t always count on other people to have your best interests at heart - not to mention the fact that they might not even know how to fulfill your needs.
That’s why it’s so important to work on a few policies you can apply to your everyday life to make sure your peace of mind and personal energy are insured. When you an rest assured that you are performing at your very best every day, and that n matter what you will be able to cope with whatever life throws at you, you’ll be able to do more of the things that bring you true joy.
It may seem arbitrary to set up a contract with yourself. You may not see the point in making promises to yourself that you’re going to make an effort to put your own needs first. But this is exactly what Teresa is saying you should be doing. Self-care is about taking care of your mental and spiritual health as much as it’s about pamperng yourself. And part of maintaining spiritual and mental health is honoring your promises to yourself.
For example, if you promised yourself that you’re going to start on a personal project, but you keep putting it off in favor of helping those in need, you aren’t really investing in personal insurance.
Why?
Because in all likelihood that other person isn’t going to help you in the same way you help them. And expecting them to help you achieve your goals just becasue you helped them achieve theirs is verging on toxic. So instead of investing your time and energy by insuring someone else’s success, it’s really time to start putting up your boundaris and formulating a personal contract that ensures your own future is covered.
Nobody can tell you what should and shouldn’t be important to you. You may value experience over stability. So you might want to invest in holidays instead of a savings account. You might value quiet time over socializing. That’s fine too. But while you’re setting up this insurance policy for yourself - make sure that you’re covering everything that’s important to YOU.
Becasue you’ve been to busy taking care of others, you might find it difficult to remember what your own wants and needs are. Try not to discuss this new policy with anyone who’s going to be offended by the fact that you’re no longer putting them first. You need to make sure that you’re doing this for yourself. Of cuorse helping others can form a part of this policy, but make sure that you aren’t counting on claiming back whatever you’re putting in. The only insurance policy you can really claim from in this world is the time and effort you put into your own life.