Hi šš¼ Iām Rosie, Un-Executive Coachā¢ at the intersection of race, gender, and trauma. Iām dedicated to helping Asian and racialized women heal from the past and find hope for the future. My culturally relevant leadership coaching can help you succeed on your own terms and recover from toxic shame, covert racism, and other non-obvious traumas. Do you crave judgment-free support that's less executive, more equitable, and always empathetic? Subscribe and receive free trauma-informed tips to Change Your Lens, See Your Worth, and Be Your Self!
What's the best holiday gift you could give...AND receive?
Dear Reader,
Today is Saturday December 24. There are two good reasons why I shouldn't be working today:
1) It's the weekend
2) It's Christmas Eve, and I celebrate Christmas.
So why am I working? Lots of reasons, but the one that comes to mind right now is: because I don't give myself permission to stop.
I've been pretty quiet lately on newsletters and social media (sorry friends), and that's mainly due to the total overwhelm, stress, and exhaustion I'm experiencing. Some of it's personal, most of it's work-related. I'm not crying victim here - it's all been my choice. And despite the exhaustion, it's been exhilarating. I've been immersed in fighting gender equity, racial trauma, and nonviolent communication, by both supporting clients and studying at the same time. I love it! And - I'm dead tired. š
Why am I sharing this with you? Two things. First, I'm excited to tell you lots more about it in 2023. The impacts of systemic racism and inequity is definitely more than skin deep. The personal impacts on each individual - both marginalized and privileged - are physiological as well as mental. Much more to come - in the meantime, you can check out these webinar recordings from my Shame Culture series:
Second, I hope you take away this lesson from my choices: perhaps the most important gift you could give yourself is compassion. I've thought a lot about this, because the obvious remedy to exhaustion is rest. But what keeps me from rest is a lack of compassion. I've heard from others the concept of "giving yourself permission" - e.g. giving yourself permission to take a "me day", or sleep in, or do a million other things that women (especially racialized women) are taught are "selfish".
So for me to give myself permission to do anything close to self-care, and not feel selfish or ashamed about it - I need to first give myself compassion. By loving myself unconditionally, I know that rest meets a deep need which capitalism and colonialism denies. As my podcast guest and she-ro Lux Perry says in our episode together, "Jeff Bezos doesn't want you napping. He doesn't even want his employees going to the bathroom cause it doesn't make him money."
Hashtag: true story. #TrueStory
So as we wrap up 2022 and look forward to a new year, however you're celebrating, or working, or living - I hope you give yourself the gift of self-compassion. I hope you receive rest, restoration, rejuvenation, relaxation, recreation, and RE-creation. And as a little inspiration, here's some wisdom from a beautiful little 6-year-old girl who has much to teach us (credit: its_an_afro on Instagram)
Reader, may your 2023 shine brighter and better than ever, and may you and your loved ones be safe, healthy, happy, and cared for.
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Warmly,
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Changing Lenses: See Your Worth, Be Your Self, Live Your Life!
Hi šš¼ Iām Rosie, Un-Executive Coachā¢ at the intersection of race, gender, and trauma. Iām dedicated to helping Asian and racialized women heal from the past and find hope for the future. My culturally relevant leadership coaching can help you succeed on your own terms and recover from toxic shame, covert racism, and other non-obvious traumas. Do you crave judgment-free support that's less executive, more equitable, and always empathetic? Subscribe and receive free trauma-informed tips to Change Your Lens, See Your Worth, and Be Your Self!
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