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#8 Mantras Every Thought Leader Should Follow to Attain a Healthy Lifestyle When you're a thought leader, every day is pretty demanding. To master the article of balancing a healthy lifestyle with work, we spoke to renowned fitness and lifestyle expert Jas Mathur who gives us 8 tips on being physically fit and mentally strong

By Priyadarshini Patwa

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They say, "Health is a state of mind and wellness is the state of being," if one can understand this then you are surely going on the right path. The growing virus and self-isolation period has made us ponder on various aspects of our lives. The working professionals are going through a phase where the future seems uncertain. And that's where a healthy mind and body can do wonders. A lot of thought leaders would agree with the same.

When you're a thought leader, every day is pretty demanding. Your time, focus, energy, and resources are demanded in every direction. As the brand grows, the consumers and the demand.

In many ways, this can be a great thing! If you're building a brand and impacting new lives every day, there are a few things that feel more fulfilling. On the other hand, it's easy to spread yourself thin and burn yourself out, especially in terms are of your mindset and lifestyle. That's when you require some tips to put everything in motion. To help you be physically fit and mentally strong we spoke to renowned fitness and lifestyle expert and founder of Limitless, Jas Mathur, who suggests eight principles that every busy thought leaders should follow:

1. Know Your Limits

With the advent of social media and digital marketing, your brand has virtually no limits on how far you can reach and how many people it can impact. While the growing fame sounds excellent, but it can also be an issue if you feel a need to stay connected with every person who reaches out to you or wants your help. Over time Jas Mathur has helped many popular celebrities like American singer and songwriter Ray J and learned how to balance working hard and knowing when to take time off.

"If you have 10 million followers or even 100,000 followers, there is only one of you. You can only devote a certain amount of time and attention to others before burning out. Don't set unrealistic expectations for yourself, this will only make you feel disappointed."

It is essential that you set a healthy expectation on the amount of time for your audience and you'll always have something qualitative to offer.

2. Get Your Sleep!

Sometimes we admire people who seem to work nonstop and have a laser focus on their dreams. It's impressive to hear about people who only operate on 3-4 hours of sleep a night, spending every waking moment building their vision. That kind of commitment can be a good thing, but you need to relax and get an adequate amount of sleep to maximize your lifestyle entirely. Jas suggests that it is vital to know when to push, and when to get a restful sleep in a crazy schedule!

"The average person needs at least six hours of sleep a night to function at full strength the next day. Hustle and grind, but remember that rest is your body's best defense against sickness and burnout. You can't serve your work the best without relaxation."

3. Eat and Drink to Your Health

The phrase "you are what you eat" is correct. What you put in your body each day dramatically affects your energy, mood, focus, and long-term health. Even if you aren't overweight, it's still possible to live an unhealthy lifestyle.

"I have myself learned the power of dieting through my first trainer. Through following a routine I lost over 250 pounds and has never looked back. One needs to keep a few things in mind for eating well: fill up on protein, eat healthy carbs, drink tons of water, and avoid sugary foods when you can."

One often fails to understand but your act of food and drinks fuels your lifestyle as a thought leader. It shouldn't be a hindrance, an emotional outlet, and escape, or worse, an addiction. Use food to serve you, and only for that purpose!

4. Get Moving!

Your body is a machine made for motion. The more active you are, the better. Even if your lifestyle as a speaker, writer, or whatever you do to influence others, takes you away from the workout, you can still be creative whenever possible.

"No matter where you are, make it a point to work out. I do it religiously, it is essential. Jog in place at home (you only need a few square feet!). Take a walk outside. Play sports with friends. Even a 20-minute walk each day will do wonders for your body and mind." he explains.

Whatever you do, avoid a sedentary lifestyle that involves mostly sitting.

5. Find a Supportive Team

As a thought leader, it's easy for people to look at you like a machine with unlimited capabilities to inspire them and give them the information they want. Sometimes, you might feel this way about yourself as well. Ultimately you are a human being, and you need support and encouragement from people you can trust to maximize your lifestyle.

Talking from personal experience how equations make a difference, Jas shares, "Invest in a few deep friendships with people who care about you more than just as a thought leader. The fantastic supporting team of my friends and family give me passion, energy, and inspiration that I use to help others. Make equations. Even if it's only one person, invest in that relationship, and regularly ask for support and encouragement."

6. Relax!

Every thought leader needs an outlet- one of the ways to unwind is to disconnect for a little bit, recharge, and be back on their game.

A true believer of "work hard; play hard", he explains, "For some people, relaxation can be a hobby, like building a craft or collecting vintage items; for others, it might be watching movies or going on vacations. Make time for relaxing and unwinding."

Putting it simply, you wouldn't try to use a dead phone, or would you? So, why should you expect yourself to keep going without regular relaxation and recharging?

7. Just Say, "No."

Every time you say "yes" to something, you're implicitly saying "no" to something else. Likewise, every time you say "no" to something, you're saying "yes" to something else! It's essential not to commit to everything that's asked of you because this will dramatically cut you off from many other vital things you might want to do.

Giving a personal reference of how Jas has attained success in life is due to his ability to judiciously say "no" to things that might be good but not best in the moment. "Don't be overly selective or private, but make sure to guard your time and energy carefully. Don't just do things that could be good for you; only do what will be best for you. There are times to serve others even when it's not necessarily convenient for you, find a balance."

8. Know Your Strengths

If you're a thought leader, there's something special and unique about the life that has drawn people. Once your brand starts to grow don't wander, stick to your strengths, and maximize your gifts. For instance, if you're a great motivational speaker, don't give in to the temptation of becoming a music artist as well just because you have an audience of people.

Having been transforming various celebs and entrepreneurs' lives to being a lifestyle coach, speaker, building companies, and a fitness expert, Jas stresses the importance of 'Focus'.

"Focus on the things that you're best at, where you have clear potential for explosive growth, and dig into those things. Not that you shouldn't explore other talents you may have, but make sure your investment of time and energy is proportionate to your skills and gifts."

Life is short to just work on work, influence people, run companies, turn lives around. Nothing is fully achieved if you don't make yourself a priority. Make yourself the centre once in a while, because you deserve it!

Priyadarshini Patwa

Former Features Editor, Entrepreneur India

Priyadarshini Patwa is the Former Features Editors of Entrepreneur India and hosted an Instagram show every Friday named ‘Lighten Up’, about people from different walks of life and talk about their work and beyond. She handled the lifestyle, features, technology, entertainment segments and was also responsible for the Digital Covers. Previously she has worked with MensXP, a Times of India entity and Deccan Chronicle. 

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