When I saw this post from The New Happy, I knew I just had to share it with my team. We have been busy; the good kind of busy – partnering with our clients. And after our staff retreat in September, we’ve got some big goals and projects ahead of us. We also hear about the stress that our clients experience regularly, so this may be a good reminder for them as well.

Stress is inevitable as long as we are alive. Interestingly enough, some stress is actually good for us: the kind of stress that we experience when we are excited about something, like starting a new project, or developing a new program or product. “Bad stress”, on the other hand, is the kind that wears us out and leaves us exhausted mentally, emotionally, and physically. And as we have all heard, this kind of stress can take a heavy toll on our minds and bodies, causing long-term harm to our health.

Advice from Stephanie Harrison, founder of The New Happy, is to ask ourselves, “What do I need today?” and take five minutes to do something that renews and rejuvenates us. This suggestion is based on her practice, Five Minutes of Care, where you decide to do something achievable but meaningful for five minutes — “something that acknowledges the reality of your challenging experiences but makes a real impact on your well-being.”

In this spirit, we asked the Integrated Work team to share their favorite self-care activities, and here are the results:

Did you find any activities from our team’s results that resonate for you? What are your favorite self-care activities? And have you asked yourself, “What do I need today?”

Whether you need five minutes, 30 minutes, or a full day, we suggest you give yourself the gift of self-care. You and your needs are just as important as getting through your next project deadline.