Most self-care efforts fail for the same reason: we skip the inner work first.
In this episode, we talk about what you actually need to know about yourself before self-care can stick.

In this episode, Dr. Roxy Riefkohl-Cook and Dr. Stephanie Ellis continue the self-care series by going beneath the surface to two things that have to come before any practice can last: self-awareness and self-compassion.
Topics include how to identify your own values and needs rather than borrowing someone else's version, understanding the difference between stressors in the world and stress in your body, and why the two do not always line up. The conversation also covers the difference between self-care and self-indulgence, how boundaries are about what you will do rather than what you expect from others, and how to give your time and energy as a gift rather than a loan.

Dr. Riefkohl-Cook and Dr. Stephanie Ellis also discuss self-compassion as a practical skill, including the work of Kristin Neff and Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, and how the language you use with yourself shapes whether self-care actually works long term. The episode closes with a conversation about JOMO, trusting the people who know you when your own self-awareness runs low, and what it means to invest in your future self.

Send your questions to richthoughtspoorjokes@gmail.com and subscribe to follow the series as it continues.

Rich Thoughts, Poor Jokes, is brought to you by Compass Coaching. At Compass Coaching, we specialize in executive coaching by collaborating with you on your goals, giving you reliable information, skills development practice opportunities, goal-oriented behavioral strategies, and help in tailoring these skills to your specific situation. We offer both topic-specific, empirically-based programs for businesses, organizations, and companies, all built on cognitive-behavioral and solution-focused principles.
Learn more and connect with us at www.compasscoachingforlife.net

Self-care is everywhere, but most of what passes for it online is surface-level at best. Today, let's go deeper on what self-care actually is, why it has to be personal, and how to know if yours is working.

In this episode, Dr. Roxy Riefkohl-Cook and Dr. Stephanie Ellis open a new series on self-care, wealth, and investing in yourself. They challenge the popular shorthand around self-care and offer a more useful, individualized framework for understanding what it really means.

Topics include how to define self-care for yourself rather than borrowing someone else's version, the difference between quick-fix self-care and something lasting, and how to assess whether what you are doing is genuinely restorative. The conversation covers self-care across multiple areas of life including social connection, physical health, emotional wellbeing, intellectual growth, and spiritual practice.

Dr. Riefkohl-Cook and Dr. Ellis also discuss the practical test for whether something counts: does it leave you with more natural energy than when you started, and is it something you actually want to do? They explore the difference between enjoyment and restoration, the trap of doing things to yourself rather than for yourself, and why self-care that does not account for your future self tends not to last.

Send your questions to richthoughtspoorjokes@gmail.com and subscribe to follow the series as it continues.

Rich Thoughts, Poor Jokes, is brought to you by Compass Coaching. At Compass Coaching, we specialize in executive coaching by collaborating with you on your goals, giving you reliable information, skills development practice opportunities, goal-oriented behavioral strategies, and help in tailoring these skills to your specific situation. We offer both topic-specific, empirically-based programs for businesses, organizations, and companies, all built on cognitive-behavioral and solution-focused principles.
Learn more and connect with us at www.compasscoachingforlife.net

Feeling overwhelmed, scattered, or behind? In this executive functioning Q&A, we answer real questions about focus, flexibility, time, and follow through.

In this episode, Dr. Roxy Riefkohl-Cook and Dr. Stephanie Ellis respond to listener questions about executive functioning in everyday life. Topics include chronic overwhelm, difficulty talking on the phone, struggling with paperwork, being late, rigidity, helping children build executive skills, hiring for executive functioning strengths, and how executive functioning overlaps with ADHD.

The conversation explores practical strategies such as breaking the day into smaller chunks, prioritizing sleep, using short structured work blocks, adjusting expectations for time management, building accommodations for attention and working memory, and recognizing when struggles may be situational versus diagnostic.

Throughout the episode, the focus remains on responsibility without shame, self assessment with curiosity, and customizing systems that make life easier, cheaper, and better.

Send your questions to richthoughtspoorjokes@gmail.com and subscribe for more conversations about executive functioning, work, and mental wellness.

Rich Thoughts, Poor Jokes, is brought to you by Compass Coaching. At Compass Coaching, we specialize in executive coaching by collaborating with you on your goals, giving you reliable information, skills development practice opportunities, goal-oriented behavioral strategies, and help in tailoring these skills to your specific situation. We offer both topic-specific, empirically-based programs for businesses, organizations, and companies, all built on cognitive-behavioral and solution-focused principles.

Learn more and connect with us at www.compasscoachingforlife.net