As a leader, I’ve always valued hard work and dedication, but I also know the importance of self-care. In my experience, taking care of my mental and emotional well-being has a direct impact on my ability to lead effectively. That’s why I’ve made it a habit to meditate for at least five minutes every day.

I’ll admit, getting into a routine of meditating wasn’t easy. It took me several attempts over the years, but I made a conscious effort at the beginning of this year to make it a daily habit. And I’m proud to say that I’ve just broken the threshold of 90 consecutive days.

Some days, I’ll meditate for 20 minutes. Other days, all I can squeeze in is a quick five. But most days, I take 10 minutes each morning to listen to a guided meditation. And let me tell you, it’s the best thing I’ve done for my self-care.

In times of uncertainty and stress, it’s easy to wake up feeling anxious about the day ahead. But taking the time to meditate helps calm those scattered thoughts and processes them, allowing me to approach each day from a grounded mental state. It helps me to be patient with myself and others, and to be a better leader, husband, and father.

On the days when I don’t give myself the time to be mindful first thing, I can see, hear, and feel myself being more reactive and less patient with others. It takes longer to get into work mode when I get to my desk, and those anxious thoughts linger throughout the day, making it difficult to concentrate on the task at hand.

Meditation has helped me to be a better leader by allowing me to approach each day with clarity and calmness. And I highly recommend it to anyone looking to improve their leadership skills or enhance their self-care routine.

If the thought of meditating is intimidating to you, know that it takes time to find your rhythm. It’s natural to feel like you’re not doing it right at first, but with consistency and patience, you’ll start to reap the benefits. I recommend using an app with guided meditations to get started. Insight Timer is the one I use, but there are others available. If you DM me, I can even point you in the direction of a few tracks that I enjoyed as I got started.

In short, meditation has been the best thing I’ve done for my leadership. And I encourage anyone who’s interested in improving their leadership skills or enhancing their self-care routine to give it a try.