Ever had the feeling that you’re being pulled in many directions? Perhaps it’s time to get selfish! Selfishness is generally considered a negative trait. But when it comes to your own health, sometimes you need to make a stand. Although there are a million excuses that stand in your way, without health it’s next to impossible to fulfill all your tasks. The kids have to get to school, or they need their lunch made, or there’s an evening function to attend are some of the reasons you may not look after yourself.

Despite the many constraints and demands on our time, you have to prioritise health as high as everything else, or else it will suffer. Perhaps 2017 is the year to try an alternative way of living. Never consider yourself indispensable, even if people try to make you feel important! With or without you, life just keeps going on. Your partner will manage. Your kids will learn to make their lunch. And your staff will realise that you are not immediately available.

Here’s a few tips:

• Schedule in regular weekly activities that are purely for yourself. It might be a gym class tuesday and thursday evenings, or a yoga class once a week at 7am. Perhaps even a massage. Eventually people will realise that you’re not always available and that it’s your “health time”! Be selfish.
• Be clear about your own dietary needs. It’s ok to say “mineral water” instead of “wine”. You don’t always have to have a beer with your mates. In fact you can even say NO to some social invitations and obligations in order to be more in control of your own consumption. Especially for people with busy social lives and those in the corporate scene, you have to be very disciplined with food, drink and alcohol. It only takes 2 or 3 years before your weight and general health has got out of control. Be selfish!

• At the end of the day, before you get home, find a quiet space and practice 20 minutes of meditation. It’s much better that you walk in feeling calm and at ease than still reeling from a busy day. Be selfish!

Start of with these 3 selfish tips and watch your health improve!

In Health and wellness