Today’s Mandala Message: Self Care First
This week I’m working through Principle #58 “Pay Yourself first” of Jack Canfield’s “The Success Principles”. I set my intention today to ponder taking care of myself first, especially as it relates to money. While this principle along with principles 52-62 are all about financial well-being, I can see where the same suggestions can apply to self care. How you take care of yourself is how you take care of your finances; how you take care of your finances is how you take care of yourself.
From an article on VeryWellMind.com by Elizabeth Scott, PhD about self-care practices she states: “Essentially, self-care means a conscious act people take in order to promote their own physical, mental, and emotional health.” With that we can also add financial health.
She lists the 5 types of self-care (physical, social, mental, spiritual, and emotional). From each of these we can apply the same mindset to financial self-care.
For Physical she states: “You need to take care of your body if you want it to run efficiently”. Applying this to financial self-care: you need to take care of your money if you want it to run efficiently.
For Social she states: “What are you doing to nurture your relationships with friends and family?”. Applying this to financial self-care: what are you doing to nurture your relationship with money?
For Mental she states: “The way you think and the things that you’re filling your mind with greatly influence your psychological well-being.” Applying this to financial self-care: the way you think and the things that you’re filling your mind with greatly influence your financial well-being.
For Spiritual she states: “Nurturing your spirit, however, doesn’t have to involve religion. It can involve anything that helps you develop a deeper sense of meaning, understanding, or connection with the universe.” Applying this to financial self-care: Nurturing your spirit … can involve anything that helps you see your money as a way to develop a deeper sense of meaning, understanding, or connection with the universe…ie philanthropy, worthy causes, etc.
For Emotional she state: “Whether you talk to a partner or close friend about how you feel, or you set aside time for leisure activities that help you process your emotions, it’s important to incorporate emotional self-care into your life.” Applying this financial self-care: Set aside time to talk about or do an activity to process your emotions about money; to help you acknowledge and express your feelings regularly and safely about your finances.
In essence, we are encouraged to develop a well-rounded relationship with our financial life; to embrace the energy of money and how it can be a tool to help us versus something that needs to be avoided, dreaded, or glossed over.
A good mindfulness practice would be to consider one self care act you can do for yourself first to improve the financial part of your life.
So how about you? What do you do to help take care of the financial part of your life? Do you avoid it? Do you nurture it?
“Assess which areas of your life
— Elizabeth Scott, PhD
need some more attention
and self-care.
And reassess your life often.
As your situation changes,
your self-care needs
are likely to shift too.”
Blessings,
Maureen
The Mandala Lady
All Things Mandalas
An Invitation
I invite you to color along with me this year as part of what I’m calling “The Year of Self-Exploration and Expansion” with all of my “Mandalas of the ___” (day, week, month, year). If you’re interested in more of a self-exploration approach to coloring, check out my “Coloring Mandalas as Meditation”. You can download this mandala at MandalaoftheWeek.com.
Mandala of the Day 