Are You Guilty of the Empty Cup Syndrome?

Everyone wants to be a "giver."

No, really.

Most people want to sincerely be helpful to others. Women especially have the need to be nurturing, giving and helpful, and I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that. No one exists in a vacuum and everyone wants to feel that they have a support system of people who genuinely care about them and "have their back".

Here's the issue though:

Most people (especially women) who always give and give usually don't take the time to replenish, restore or even fill themselves so that they can have something to give.

When you're SO focused on "giving" all the time that you don't take the time to sufficiently build up your own reserves, then you're essentially trying to give from an empty cup. Common sense tells us that when there's nothing there, you can't give anything.

It's impossible.

Yet time after time, women are constantly trying to be all things to everyone without spending the necessary time to build themselves up first. They neglect their health, their careers, finances, mental and emotional well-being because they are so busy taking care of everyone else around them.

I'm not saying that you should become selfish or self-centered.

What I AM saying is that you should practice more self-love.

When you truly love yourself, you'll make your growth and well-being a priority.

When you're a priority, then you'll have more to give to those that you love and care about and want to help along their journey. As they often say during the pre-flight safety briefing--"You have to put on your mask first before you can assist the person next to you." This is true in life as well. It's very difficult for you to help or guide others if you're not taking care of your needs first.

So take a moment to do a self-check and ask yourself, "What are you doing to fill your cup?"

More than likely the answer is not much, or little of nothing.

Let me challenge you to begin by spending just 15 minutes a day, four times a day, on you. Do something--anything--that will feed you and fill your cup. Go walking, read a passage from a book, read an article, write in your journal, take a drive, listen to music--anything that you can do that will enable you to be a better version of yourself.

The better you are--the better you can be for those around you.