How to Make Time for Social Justice Work and a Nap
By: Shawn Fink
Tags: Social Justice, Well Being, Racial Justice

If you struggle between wanting to lay down and take a nap or make an impact as a leader or as a creative soul — you are in the right place.

I’ll always look back on history and think of 2020 as the year a whole new generation of anti-racists were born.

Yes, there was a virus and a pandemic that made life really, really hard.

But there was huge progress in ways we hadn’t seen in our lifetimes in the area of racial justice because of the heart-breaking police murder of George Floyd.

And yet .. there is so more work to do to disrupt how white supremacy rules over our every system in society.

We simply cannot give up. We cannot quit. We cannot let our exhaustion stop us.

Because yes. We are exhausted. Tired to the bone.

The thing, though, is this is hard work because it’s a marathon not a sprint.

June 2020 was a sprint.

Now it’s time for the marathon, especially for white women like me.

Because we really do care and we need to prove it.

The world needs us to lean in — not out.

And this is the time we need to lean into our divine rage — before another urgent matter arises.

As a life design coach AND a social justice warrior and anti-racist for nearly 20 years, I will be sharing some of my own well-being practices that help me stay strong, balanced and sane so that I can make a bigger impact without giving up in my upcoming Rise Stronger in 2021 7-Day Challenge. (Sign up here.)

The strategies we’ll be focusing on during that week-long challenge are a higher level of well-being than we’re used to implementing in our lives and that’s why they are so powerful.

However, until then … I really wanted to make sure I specifically address how to make sure you take time for that nap AND your social justice work.

RECONNECT WITH YOUR WHY

In my private coaching work, I talk about your Why Factor all the time. You have to know what you are working toward in order to really know where you are going. It’s far too easy to get sidetracked with shiny objects by the latest explosion in the internet anger machine. Rather than jump all over the place, reconnect with your values, your mission and your personal goals for working toward human rights and social justice issues. If you don’t know what your why is, that’s a great place to start.

PAUSE AND TAKE BREAKS FROM THE NEWS. LOTS OF THEM.

Only you know what your body needs and so sometimes what you need right now is not convenient for the news cycle. It’s OK to opt-out of reading or watching today’s big news story to focus on your needs. If you are experiencing anxiety or overwhelm, it’s time to stop and take a long break. Your brain and your body needs a lot of time to heal and recover, especially from traumatizing events. Pro Tip — It’s even better is to work in weekly — or daily — rests from the news rather than go full on digital escape. I personally try to take at least 60–90 minutes of unplugged time in my day.

GO BIG OR GO HOME

In order to make an impact in the world, we must make intentional actions that actually do good. So while screaming on social media how mad you are feels like you’re doing something, ask yourself what you can really do to make an impact. Instead of sharing on Facebook, can you call your representatives, write emails or call voters? Pro-Tip — Dedicate an hour or two a week solely to your social justice work so you can keep up your own consistency. I do this on Fridays thanks to a colleague who suggested it.

FIND YOUR PEOPLE

The best thing I ever did was start a local group of like-minded people in my community. We started as a small group of super upset and angry women in 2016 and now we are 2K strong with men and women with a variety of passions and life experiences. Having this group to lead, empower and stay connected with has been crucial to keeping me going and not giving up. This is not solitary work that we’re doing. It’s relational. It impacts people. And that’s why it’s really best done with a group to help grow your momentum and not feel so alone. To find your people, you may have to put yourself out there and use your voice. This is a Brave Yes move for sure.

STAY IN YOUR INTEGRITY

Since it’s so easy to get caught up in the collective anxiety or anger of the people on social media, it’s also vital that you keep your integrity about you and know what you are willing to do and what you are not willing to do. For instance, I don’t lead with anger. It’s just not my style of empowering people and disrupting. I am at my best when I am empowering others to use their voice, tend to themselves and leading them on how to stay in their integrity. My line of balance is about staying calm and impactful. You do you. Don’t worry about what others think. Being fully resourced in mind, body and spirit means you will have a greater capacity to serve. You simply won’t be effective if you are exhausted and overwhelmed.

Ready to balance your passions for social justice and taking a nap? Join my Rise Stronger in 2021 FREE 7-Day Challenge. I’ll show you a set of 6 strategies that you can use to feel stronger, be calmer and have more resilience to bounce back from the daily stress of being human.