Finding ways to support your own mental health and well-being isn’t just something our cofounder Gary Vaynerchuk talks about frequently, it’s also one of this decade’s most important cultural conversations. As such, you’ve probably heard the term “self-care” being thrown around a lot over the past few years. At first glance or scroll, self-care can seem to mean drinking matcha lattes and doing yoga, which is great if you love drinking matcha lattes and doing yoga—but considerably less great if you’d rather drink beer and watch Netflix.
“For a long time, I was turned off to the idea of self-care because it conjured up visions of bubble baths and pedicures,” says Katie Proctor, cofounder of Wellevation HQ, a consulting group focused on influencer marketing in the wellness space, and also a registered dietitian. “When I started to redefine what self-care meant and understood that it’s up to the individual to decide, it became more meaningful.”
So forget about the matcha lattes and the yoga for a minute. As Proctor puts it, self-care “starts with knowing yourself, as that’s the only way you can care for yourself.” From there, itis a matter of making “intentional decisions made to protect and enhance your well-being.” Her strategy goes like this: 1) Know yourself. 2) Set boundaries—and actually maintain them. 3) Consistently check in with yourself and reevaluate what’s working and what’s not. 4) Make changes and repeat. There are no photogenic beverages or trendy exercises to embrace, just self-awareness combined with self-love, plus a little self-discipline for weaving the two together.
