Dr. AJ Lee - Creating a Culture of Self-Care and Wellness

Dr. Lee places importance on setting boundaries and voicing personal needs to leaders. She explained, “You want that trust to be built in a way where if you know that they’re struggling you can empower them with the resources, with tools, so that you can get to where you want to go together.”

Key self-awareness strategies for minimizing burnout include establishing a soul-filling morning routine and an evening routine that involves being present. “Your workday starts at least 24 hours before, but definitely the evening before, so if you’re not planning for the day ahead and mindful of what you’re doing that day before the workday, your workday is going to be affected.”

She also prioritizes goal setting in various life categories. To spur motivation, she says to reflect: “How much is doing this consistently getting me to where I want to go?” With goal setting, it’s not always about adding, but sometimes taking away and filling time with something that helps reach a goal.

Dr. Lee’s final advice? “Keeping the end picture in mind while still filling your own cup.” She added: “We can each reframe our approach to make sure we are doing what is best for ourselves and also those within our sphere of influence.”