Caring for Yourself And Others As A Leader

The first half of 2020 has been a ride that none of us could have anticipated. As Covid-19 struck, took hold, changing the way we live and work, the tragic death of George Floyd signaled an outcry, recalling a series of recent events, declared a racism pandemic by the American Psychological Association. The need for self-care could not be more critical.

In this week’s episode of The Corelink Solution, we get to pick the mind of Shola Richards, a positivity writer, and workplace civility expert who’s turned his struggles and mental trauma in life into a rallying cry for change in the workplace. From film to Silicon Valley, government offices to healthcare organizations, Shola’s words have touched many lives — and now, he gets to share his transformative story with us.

Shola’s thoughts on self-care and mindfulness can trace their origins to some of the darkest times of his life, including clinical depression, toxic work environments, being bullied, and even an attempt at suicide. It was during his darkest moment that he realized that he couldn’t be the only person going through this experience, and this became Shola’s driving force, his why.

In this episode, Shola Richards presents ideas that you can implement to become a more compassionate leader. These ideas include lots of self-love, conserving one’s energy, and prioritizing which events in your life need attention. We also discuss several actionable items that you and your team can work on together, like putting together start-stop-continue lists — things/behaviors that one should start, that one should stop, and that one should keep on doing so — in order to get the most value out of your team’s time.

With tensions high due to recent events and the nation experiencing many bouts of civil unrest, empathic leadership in times of crises seems to be not only a necessity in the workplace, but a responsibility for each person within a community, and on a larger scale, within our entire country.

Self-love Isn’t Just For The Self.

Other than some R&R, Shola says self-care requires some heavy work too and being mindful of one’s intake: setting boundaries, distancing from social media, removing toxic influences from your life.

“Start thinking about the people in your life who fill you…