At Emerald Virtual Assistance, we firmly believe in taking time for self care. From physical health to spiritual health to mental health, taking care of yourself should be the first order of business on your agenda. The greatest commodity you have for your business is yourself. If you push your own needs and comforts to the back burner day after day, you will burn out.
Our company exists to help you reclaim your time. Whether you save this time for business or pleasure is up to you, but consider that you do your best work when you’re at your freshest. Without self care, there’ll be nothing in the tank to give your clients—or your business.
Body First, Business Second
There is a powerful mantra, first spoken by Kate Northrup, CEO of The Origin Company and author of “Money: A Love Story” and “Do Less”, which states: “Body first. Business second.” This idea has deeply impacted the way our founder, Emerald Storm, does business. In a recent interview for the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, she states:
“I have learned [body first, business second] the hard way, and any time I forget it my body will remind me. ‘Hey you can’t run on zero sleep and fifteen cups of coffee, that’s not going to work for you!’ You’ve got to take care of that foundation first—at its most basic level it is your body—and doing whatever it is that makes it feel good and keep going so that you can show up for your business. That trickles out into the other foundations of your business and making sure that they too are strong so that you can grow. But the body has to come first.”
Within the interview, Emerald was extremely candid, and had this to say about her own cancer diagnosis:
“When I decided I was going to grow my company, within two months I had a cancer diagnosis. I really feel that was the universe being like, ‘No, you’re not on the wrong path, but you’re going to take care of this first, because you can’t go down that path if you’re not strong and healthy.’”
It’s How We Do Business
With “body first, business second” as Emerald’s main focus on how to best run her company, it has also become how she manages her VA’s. By finding the need to take care of herself, she makes sure her VA’s take care of themselves as well. Gracesyn Powell, Emerald’s personal assistant, is diagnosed with ADHD, a type of neurodivergency, and is frank about her struggles with this disorder. Shamanee Willis is an open book about her fight with lupus, and both she and Becka Goings battle the pain and fatigue of rheumatoid arthritis on a daily basis.
Without Emerald’s belief that one’s body comes before business, her team would burn out, their quality work would suffer, and EVA as a whole would fall by the wayside. But after years in business, that is not the case. Emerald has put this idea into practice with fantastic results, and by it, has built a thriving company that takes care of its own as well as its clients.
Be Intentional with Self Care
Do not take for granted the rest and recharge one can find in conscious and intentional self care. This fact is true not only for Emerald and her team, but also for every entrepreneur and business owner. If you listen to your body and make your health a priority, you’ll soon come to find your business will benefit all the more.
To anyone in the business world, Emerald says:
“Take care of yourself and you’ll take care of your business—that’s my number one piece of advice.”
At Emerald Virtual Assistance, our team of experienced VA’s can give you the time you need for self care. Put your body first and let EVA help you with your business. Schedule a consultation today.