Sound familiar? I had a suspicion it would.  

 As campaigners and change makers we are acutely aware of the injustice there is in this world – whether that be the impact of climate change or advocating for those who are denied access to vital services and support.  

Subconsciously we may create a hierarchy of need, where the needs of others become far more important that our own. I know that I’ve worked while I’ve been sick and stressed. I felt I couldn’t grumble while those we supported were being denied access to healthcare. 

When we do this we neglect our own wellbeing and our own needs, which, in the long run, doesn’t help anyone. By neglecting our own needs, we run the risk of compromising our own ability to create change as well as feeling frustrated, or worse, burnt-out. We may get to a point where we feel that we have to walk away from doing the thing we are passionate about because it hurts us too much. 

But there is another way, which enables us to keep doing what we love – helping to make this world better, more just and more beautiful – and that’s embracing compassion for ourselves as well as others. As Brene Brown shares: 

“The exhausted doctor in the ER room in New York doesn’t benefit more if you conserve your kindness only for her and withhold it from yourself or your coworker who lost her job. The surest way to ensure that you have a reserve of compassion and empathy for others is to attend to your own feelings.” 

As activists and changemakers we need to keep ourselves in the picture too – by having compassion for ourselves as well as others around us we can continue to do our wok to challenge injustice and make this world more beautiful  

If you want to know more about how coaching can help you find a way to have compassion for yourself and others – book in for a chat with me