Hey Reader,

Last weekend in the U.S. we celebrated Mother’s Day. My brother and I were fortunate enough to spend time with our mom and remind her how much we love and appreciate her.

But I also carved out time to check on friends who have lost their moms or have a complicated relationship with the holiday. This got me thinking about how one person’s joy can be another’s grief.

Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, feeling powerless in the face of rampant systemic injustice, or anticipatory grief about an uncertain future, we’ll all experience profound loss at one time or another.

Thriving Mindfully Coach and Grief + You Retreat facilitator Ananda Leeke puts it this way when reflecting on the loss of her mother:

Honoring our grief is part of what I call the inner work of mindful changemaking. Most of us are familiar with the outer work—“physical” labor— time, people, and project management. The inner work is the mental and emotional labor—connection to purpose, mindset, thoughts, emotions, etc. I share more about this in my book How to Thrive When Work Doesn’t Love You Back A Practical Guide for Taking Care of Yourself While Changing The World.

When we focus only on the outer work, we experience short-term success. But when we holistically address the inner AND outer work, we can sustainably take care of ourselves and do our best work over the long term.

Caring for ourselves (and our colleagues) is an important part of the inner work. With grief, we can start by acknowledging that it’s a thing and that it’s okay to grieve at work. There’s no universal response to loss. We respond to it and process it differently.

Whether you’ve experienced a loss or know someone who needs support, Ananda shares the five self-love languages and leaves us with this invitation: “As you progress in your grief journey, remember you get 1,440 minutes daily. Choose to use some of your minutes to mother yourself in the best way.”

As you move through this season, I invite you to give grace to yourself and your colleagues.

Take care of yourself this week,
​
Meico

P.S. If you know someone struggling with grief at work, feel free to forward this message to them.

P.P.S. If you missed my podcast interview with Ananda, you can check out her episode here.

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