How to Take Care of Yourself as You Grow Up

“To love oneself is the beginning of a life-long romance” Oscar Wilde

As I grew older, a funny thing started happening with my friends and I. With “growing up” came the realization of responsibilities – graduation, career path, and earning money.

Therefore, each one of us went to do those things. However, a good chunk of us forgot to take care of the fundamentals ….. what has been painful to witness over these years is the damage that is has caused;

• During High School – I noticed friends smoking, drinking, and speaking to meet external expectations regardless of what it did to their mental and physical health.
• During University – In business school, I noticed friends choosing career paths for fame and money (or simply not knowing) regardless of what it did to their sense of purpose (mental health) or lifestyle (health).
• After University 9-5 Job – I noticed some friends not satisfied with the work they were doing at their jobs. Yet they worked 10+ hours a day exhausting their mental and physical health.

In this path to “growing up” we forgot to…

We forgot to love ourselves.

 What exactly is self-love?

Self-love is not how you feel about yourself – that will change from moment to moment.

Self-love is the work ethic behind what you do for yourself – your character, persistence, and grit in hard and easy times.

It is promising yourself that you will exercise, eat healthy, and meditate regardless of what life circumstances demand of you.

It is say “no” to alcohol, junk food, or late-work requests that compromise your well-being.

There are many ways in which we treat ourselves that we would never subject anyone else to.

• Neglecting our physical, emotional, or financial health.
• Postponing or denying the important decisions we need to make.
• Convincing yourself that the dreams can wait – I will do it someday.

All of these acts are disrespectful – even mean.

Its easier to be careless and unloving to ourselves than others. Why because how you treat yourself is a moral issue – you can get away with it (but the guilt or regret will come back).

The only difference is that if you do it badly, nobody else is going to call you on it.

Very few people will stop you and say, “Hey man! Are you taking care of your health – avoiding junk food, hitting the gym, and meditating?”. But almost everyone will ask you, “How is work? What are you up-to?”.

Lessons Learned

• Love Yourself – Take care of your nutrition, exercise, and mind at all costs.
• Beware the Societal Priorities – Unfortunately, they don’t always have your well-being of mental, physical, and social in mind.
• Don’t Shorten Your Already Short Life – by sacrificing the essentials of nutrition, exercise, and sleep.