We were lucky to catch up with Em MacDougal recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Em, so happy to have you on the platform and I think our readers are in for a treat because you’ve got such an interesting story and so much insight and wisdom. So, let’s start with a topic that is relevant to everyone, regardless of industry etc. What do you do for self-care and how has it impacted you?
Before getting into the self-care part, I try to evaluate what’s causing me stress — it helps me better plan my next steps. If I feel overwhelmed, I take a break, if possible. If a particular situation, I analyze it to see if it’s within my control. If not, I tell myself that stressing over it never solves anything, and try to occupy my mind with other things.
Those can be:
1) blasting rock music in my headphones — I find it helps release negative emotions like anger/stress, sadness, etc. Sometimes, I listen to meditative or classical music (like Ludovico Einaudi) or specific playlists I used to play years ago that put me in a good mood.
2) Immerse myself in a good book, usually, some historical fiction or mystery.
3) Walking, it definitely makes a difference. In an ideal world, that walk would be by the ocean…
When I take proper care of my mental and body health, I find that I am in a better mood overall, I feel more creative/inspired, and just able to get through my tasks more effectively.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
Hi, I’m Em, the person behind BloomingMagnoliasBlog.com, a life and style blog that highlights feminine style mixed with stories from real-life experiences.
I started this site as a creative outlet to survive the soul-sucking job I had at the time. BloomingMagnoliasBlog.com gave me a sense of purpose and helped me explore my creative side. It also helped me discover a new hobby — photography, and the joy that comes along with it.
Despite the many changes in the industry, I stayed true to myself and my style; authenticity is one of my core values and something I’m proud of.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
My curiosity and willingness to learn were probably the most impactful qualities in my life so far. Learning to set boundaries for things and people that disrupted my peace was another quality or skill, if you will, that I found to be extremely important in my journey.
My advice to anyone at any stage of their life is to “absorb” as much info as possible, but also, learn to discern reality from fiction — it will save your sanity in the long run, to say the least. Read, read, read on various topics to develop critical thinking and discover different perspectives. We can only learn so much from our own experience; expanding our knowledge through verified sources is key to moving forward and reaching our potential.
Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
While I believe that, especially as a business owner, one should have some basic understanding/oversight of every area/aspect of it, your best bet would be to go all in on your strengths and, if possible, outsource the tasks which might be holding you back. And if you have extra time, definitely use it on overcoming your weaknesses. At the end of the day, your skills and knowledge are assets no one can take from you, so it’s extremely important to advance them as much as possible.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bloomingmagnoliasblog.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/em.bloomingmagnoliasblog/
Image Credits
BloomingMagnoliasBlog.com
