When Self-Care Becomes Another Performance — and What to Do Instead
Many leaders in caring professions — coaches, therapists, ministers, doctors, nurses — approach self-care the same way they approach their work: with commitment, discipline, and a desire to do it well.
But when we bring our high-achieving, goal-oriented selves into self-care, it can quietly defeat the very purpose.
True self-care isn’t something to conquer.
It’s something that nourishes.
It’s about identifying the practices you look forward to, return to again and again, and rely on to sustain your energy, clarity, and capacity to serve.
In our retreats, we explore A Fuller Cup™, a holistic model designed to help leaders reflect on whether their self-care practices are addressing the needs of the whole person — mental, physical, emotional, relational, spiritual, and ecological.
Rather than explain it all in writing, I decided to simply record a short video to share the heart of this model and why it matters so deeply right now.
🎥 Watch the video below
This is a simple, unscripted reflection I recorded to share a model we use in our retreats — not as something to master, but as an invitation to notice what your life and work are asking for right now.
If this perspective resonates — if you feel the quiet knowing that your own cup needs more than maintenance — I invite you to join us.
These retreats are intentionally small and tend to fill quickly, creating space for deep rest, honest reflection, and meaningful renewal.
🌿 Upcoming Retreat Opportunities
In-Person | A Fuller Cup™
📅 February 21
🕘 9:00am – 4:00pm ET
📍 Trinity Retreat Center, West Cornwall, Connecticut
👉Reserve Your Spot
Virtual | Seasons of Need: Regenerating Ourselves and Our Planet™
📅 February 28 & March 1
🕕 6:30am–2:00pm PT / 9:30am–5:00pm ET
💻 Live via Zoom
🎟 Use code NEED26 for $20 off
👉 Register Now
**In-Person | Seasons of Need: Regenerating Ourselves and Our Planet™
📅 June 5–7
📍 Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY
🔔 Registration opening soon
Suze Shaner-Brodax is an executive coach and leadership & organization effectiveness consultant. She is also an Interfaith/Interspiritual Minister and teaches yoga and meditation – tools to keep one sane in uncertain times. She helps professionals step up to their fullest leadership, life and growth potential. At times this means getting out of their own way in getting important stuff accomplished. www.sagelead.com.