Kristina Lopez

I'm a mental health and wellness writer (among other things) and I often dive into research mental and brain health stress management techniques for my clients (and my own wellbeing). However, the number one commonality that can truly help you is self-awareness. By getting to know yourself the best, you can learn what best serves your (inner and outer) self. I wrote a LinkedIn post a couple of years back about why and how self-care can improve your self-made business. This can apply if you're working a 9-to-5 or a stay-at-home parent, too. Here's the link if you want to start learning how to take care of every part of you: www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-self-care-habits-can-improve-your-self-made-business-lopez/ Let me know what you think! :)

I've always known I preferred structure over routine. Not everyone is built to be on the same schedule with the same workload in the same location every day. You're a human being—an autonomous and muti-skilled one at that—so it's important that you learn to utilize that when possible. Even in school, I remember loving the structure of learning but couldn't stand (or stay within the parameters) of having the same class times or courseload every grade or semester. Evaluate whether you prefer a more rigid routine or prefer a structure that lets you frame what your day or month will look like. It's the main reason I started freelancing because I need that variety in my schedule and work—even if I choose to set a routine for one of those weeks.

When my writing productivity stalls or hits a standstill, I know that it's often from a disconnect between my mind and body. For example, there are days I feel overwhelmed—either my own time management snafu or my client calendar just lands that way—and I have a blog post, a travel guide, and an email sequence due. I used to power through to get it done in my early freelance career, but I realized I had to quiet my mental spirals and reconnect with how I felt. Now, I take time to go through my mobility stretch routine, head to the gym to release some stress with strength training, read a fiction book, or take a nap. The point is to let the RAM speed in your brain reset and it'll work more efficiently with set intervals throughout the day.

I love this take—it's simple yet effective. I'm re-evaluating my rates and services offerings so this is a great place to start thinking over a few things. Thank you for sharing! :)

True confidence comes from within and self-care nurtures the innermost parts of you that build positive and habitual change throughout your life. You can't have confidence in who you are if you don't know who you are. And, if you don't know who you are, you can't like who you are (aka, confidence). Self-care is more than a face mask—it's the nourishment to the soul that is so personal to you that only you can find it. Once you do, no one can take that confidence away. If you'd like to learn how to start your self-care process to help build confidence in your personal and professional life, check out the LinkedIn article on my profile for more.