September is here and the kids are back to school. It’s a moment so many of us have been waiting for and yet here we are after all that intense time and many of us are feeling a little (or a lot) burned out.
That’s why September is a great month to refresh our strategies and think about our boundaries.
A boundary acts as a container to reinforce our priorities and around our physical and mental health. A lack of boundaries tends to show up because many of us are set up with a belief system that tells us that we need to do everything. It’s our autopilot to always take on more. Even though we might not be happy being the overly responsible one, we minimize and rationalize the impact it has on us.
Control is also at play. When we have high standards we need to be the one that takes charge and make it all happen in line with our expectations. That might work during normal times when life unfolds more predictably but as soon as extra pressure and adversity hits, being the one that does everything at a high standard means we push ourselves harder and harder to control it all. That leads us straight into burnout.
If you can relate to feeling like you say yes to too much and take on too much and those choices negatively impact your health, relationships or work, now is the time to strategically use that information. We have to shift our mindset in the direction of sustainability as we continue to navigate so many unknown factors this fall. The only way to keep ourselves on track to sustainably show up in our lives and be effective is by reinforcing boundaries that protect our physical and mental well-being. Boundaries are excellent self-care put into practice. The first step is to think about where you could set a boundary that will help you with sustainability. When you understand where your boundaries are needed it makes it more likely that you apply them.
-Coach Liane
