Renew and Refuel
Renewal and refueling is all about preserving the greatest asset that you have - you.
The single most powerful investment that you can make is in you yourself. We are the instruments of our own performance, and to be effective, we need to recognize the importance of taking time regularly to unwind and relax ourselves.
Renewing and refueling is not something that you do once a year when you take a holiday or just over the weekends. Its small contributions that you make towards yourself every single day. It's about developing a holistic growth approach towards yourself.
“I’m too busy” “I’m stressed” have become common modern day lingo and in fact it makes you wonder if the person is really doing anything consequential if they don’t mention being in any of these conditions. But it is these very conditions that lead to individuals getting burnt out and dealing with stress and anxiety.
You need to build on your internal self to contribute your best externally i.e. on the outside.
Renewal and refueling is holistic and is 4 dimensional. It is growing in the dimensions of your physical, mental, social and spiritual.
The physical dimension involves caring effectively for our physical body- eating the right kinds of foods, getting sufficient rest, relaxation and exercising on a regular basis
Tip: make a list of activities that would keep you in good physical shape and suit your lifestyle.
The spiritual dimension is connecting with yourself - the innermost part of you. It’s about being in touch with your core, your commitments to your value system and your center. It is the source that inspires you and helps uplift you.
Tip: try waking up a few minutes early and mediating and reflecting on any of your stress, joys or even just your day ahead.
Mental dimension is about not losing touch with updating our knowledge. It's about keeping the brain mentally active by being actively involved in learning and exploring knowledge outside your work domain. It's about reading good quality literature or watching films and documentaries that motivate you or researching on a subject that inspires you.
Tip: Pick out a book that would positively impact and grow you. Give yourself a time frame to complete that book or even start with committing to reading a few pages a day.
Finally, the social domain is our relationship with the people around us, our family, friends, colleagues and associates. It’s about working on these relationships to make them strong, by adopting empathetic communication and creative cooperation.
Tip: take one relationship in your life that you want to improve or you feel that you have been neglecting. See what actions you can do to help strength the bond.
Try adopting and imbibing one activity in each dimension for a month and see the difference it creates within you. It’s a personal performance measure that only you can measure. It’s for you to see where you stand today and compare it to where you will be a month down the lane.
Renewal and refueling is a constant measure to grow you. It’s a process of self-growth, self-realization and self-security.