Filling Your Cup

This week I was leading a professional development conference and I heard several people (including me) say, "my cup is filled right now". We've also heard the phrase, “you can’t pour from an empty cup." But many of us try to do just that. We hustle from one task to the next, to this meeting, to that event, and push, and push. But we don't think about how we are running on empty a majority of the time.

I would rather that we do more than focus on resting before we feel our tanks are on empty. I would like us to really notice when our cup is being filled. And I don't just mean by implementing more self-care routines, even though I have talked about self-care and I'm a big advocate. But we also need to be more intentional and have awareness when the good and the joyful things are happening. That's how we can really allow our cup to be filled. Unfortunately, we're often so busy that as the good things happen to us, we do not pause to appreciate them. Seeing an old colleague, having a moment of clarity when you are in the midst of problem solving, or even just stopping to notice how gorgeous the weather is outside - these things carry a lot of joy, if we will let them. It's just a sad fact that often we're moving so quickly that we don't get the full benefit.

What I'm saying today is not only for you, but for me as well. Let's start to become very intentional about noticing the things that nourish us, the things that fill our cup. Let's stop in the moment when good things are happening and really let ourselves feel nourished. Let us ask ourselves more regularly what gave us a little bit of joy in the last 24 hours. As we slow down regularly to record and appreciate these moments, we make it easier to experience more great moments, and constantly feel that our cup has been filled.