We can all remember that handful of leaders that were true mentors. They left a legacy behind. Years later you still remember the concepts they taught you. You’ve adopted them and have seen the lasting results! Maybe the results you got even made you say, “Wow, they were so wise, my life as a leader is forever changed!”
As a leader, I often look for strategic ways to improve my own work, inspire the team and invest in others. A little known fact is that a healthy lifestyle is a direct link to making you a better leader. Stress management, sleep, exercise, and nutrition can aid our body in ways we may not even realize, benefiting our career! Each of these takes a time commitment, and it may be even harder to “unplug” now that work can follow you home in the form of texts and emails. Maybe in the last year you are one of those whose work is at home!
Stress Management
Downtime is critical to many aspects of life, including better health. Being overworked can lead to stress and chronic stress can literally make you sick. We can’t avoid having some level of stress, but if you are stressed-out most of the time, it’s important to take action. Take comfort knowing that all you do serves God and brings Him glory, including the things you do for work.
Try this: Focus on appreciating the gifts you have and the opportunities to use those on a daily basis. Take time with friends and family, enjoy a hobby or explore stress-reducing activities like Bible reading. Create the strategies you need to unplug from work. No matter where you are starting, small steps will reap great rewards.
Stress Management Benefits
- Boosts mood
- Aids digestion
- Decreased risk of heart disease
- Lower blood pressure
- Aids weight loss
- Yields restful sleep
In addition to the list above, stress management can affect our mental health. Medi-Share surveyed 70 men and women in ministry to take a rare look into the mental health of church leaders:
Download the FULL REPORT from Medi-Share:
“10 Things About Mental Health Every Pastor or Leader MUST Know”
Sleep
Sleep plays many vital roles in the body. It restores tissues and clears away the byproducts of normal cellular activity in the brain. Generally, we know sleep is important and we recognize immediately when we don’t get enough. However, there are competing priorities. Our sleep is affected by social factors, we tend to be awake when the people around us are active. Work, school, and family responsibilities affect how much we sleep. We’re also social creatures, and will happily do without sleep to have more time for our personal lives. This is especially true if work takes up many hours of our day. Thanks to cellphones and laptops we have more access than ever, and access keeps us online longer and working later. These activities can cut into our sleep time. However, a restful night’s sleep is not as far off as you may think!
Try this: Bedtime is not just for kids- schedule it in, with a goal of 6-8 hours each night. Put away your electronics. Track your caffeine intake and begin setting goals to reduce by just 1 cup a day. If stress and worry are keeping you up at night, try to memorize a scripture this week, or write down the thoughts that keep playing in your mind- give your mind the break it needs by turning off the repeating mental list. If you do wake up, spend time in prayer or reading scripture.
Proper Sleep Benefits
- Better stress management
- Boosts productivity, concentration and creativity
- Better physical and mental function
- Improved weight management and appetite regulation
Exercise
God designed our bodies to be active. Our muscles and bones work in harmony to perform amazing feats of strength and endurance. So, it’s not surprising that people who are active are often healthier and have a better quality of life than those who aren’t. Research even suggests that exercise can benefit the brain. It may improve learning and memory. It also appears to prevent the loss of brain function that occurs as we age. Having a strong, healthy body helps provide the energy we want to serve God, our family, and our community. Exercise can also be a useful tool for weight loss. The key to sticking with it is choosing something you enjoy!
Try this: Spend time moving, standing and walking when possible, aim for 10k steps a day. When possible, pick up the pace to get your heartrate up. During your planned workouts try interval training or HIIT routines to challenge your strength and endurance. Use less modern conveniences like elevators, escalators, and riding mowers. Make exercise a habit, think of it as a natural part of your day, just like brushing your teeth. Schedule it, include aerobic and strength training for a strong, fit body. Explore your interests – you tend to stick with what you enjoy! Sweat your stress away! Take a brisk walk once a day.
Regular Exercise benefits
- Improves sleep
- Boosts your mood
- Boosts energy
- Aerobic exercise lowers tension
- Improves metabolic rate and cardiovascular health
- Strengthens muscles and bone density
Nutrition
There are foods that help keep you functioning the way God designed. These are the foods that work with your body. They are nutrient rich, and high in fiber to both fill you up and keep you energized, providing sustained energy for the demands of the day. For example, choosing whole grains, like oats, instead of cereal; or brown rice over a dinner roll, benefit you in satisfaction and energy. On the other hand, processed foods like chips or pop tarts may cause you to overeat, then be over hungry in just a few hours. Keeping food choices focused on how much fuel (nutrients) will be received in the body is a great way to find a perfect balance. In addition, avoiding calorie dense foods like cheese or pizza and limiting or eliminating sugary sodas and fruit juices by swapping for fresh fruit can reduce fatigue. Plant-based foods have the lowest caloric density of all foods. They are very nutritious, and optimize your health. Additional benefits are found in healthy, whole food fats like, nuts, olives, seeds, and avocados. Enjoy foods in the way God originally made them, and eat your way to better health: fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, and whole grains.
Try this: Start with one new nutrition goal a week, like make your salad the main dish, and over time these changes will grow and your energy will climb. Keep an e-food journal, it will help you see opportunities to add nutrient rich foods.
Proper Nutrition benefits
- Stay fueled for better focused.
- Increased energy
- Weight management
- Prevention of chronic disease and illness
- Healing and cellular restoration
Putting it all Together
While you are setting and tracking work related goals, don’t forget about yourself! Take care of you and you will be better a better leader. Whether it’s increased creativity, execution on a goal, or inspiring your team, improving your health can bring you to new heights! Healthy goals will lead to healthy outcomes, like better productivity, stress management, confidence, clarity of mind, creativity, and focus. If you waiver on a new goal, don’t worry! Creating new habits takes time and God strengthens us in our weakness, and offers joy through the journey. We can make small strides to where we want to be with His help.
Remember, God made us in His image. Our bodies are capable of amazing things. Our bodies have been created to restore and repair through therapeutic lifestyle changes. We can have better quality of life, bringing honor to God. With one change at a time, one step at a time, your goal can be achieved.
Download the FULL REPORT from Medi-Share:
“10 Things About Mental Health Every Pastor or Leader MUST Know”
Author – Stephani Spangler, Director of Health and Wellness at Medi-Share