One Question You Should Ask Yourself DAILY

This one I got from Jay Shetty, and it resonated deeply:

What did I do for myself today?

Six words. No complexity. No framework. No ten-step system. Just one honest question that will expose exactly how well — or how poorly — you're treating yourself.

I started asking myself this question daily. And what I found out was uncomfortable. Most days, the answer was nothing. I did nothing for myself. I showed up for work. I showed up for other people. I showed up for obligations and responsibilities and commitments that had my name attached to them. But when it came to doing something specifically, intentionally, for me? Blank.

And I'm willing to bet you're in the same situation right now.

Be honest. How often do you reflect on what you did for yourself today?

Not what you accomplished. Not what you checked off a list. Not what you produced for someone else's benefit. What did you do that was purely for you? Something that filled you back up instead of draining you further?

Most people can't answer that question. Not because they don't want to — because they've never been asked. Nobody teaches you to prioritize yourself. In fact, most of us were taught the opposite. Take care of everyone else first. Be selfless. Put your needs last. And we wonder why we're running on empty by Wednesday.

How often do you go days or weeks without doing anything for yourself?

I've gone stretches where I couldn't remember the last time I did something that wasn't tied to an outcome, a deadline, or another person's expectation. Weeks. Sometimes longer. And during those stretches, everything suffered. My training. My focus. My patience. My writing. All of it declined because the person responsible for fueling all of those things — me — was neglected.

You can't pour from nothing. That's not motivation-poster wisdom. That's physics.

This question changed how I operate.

Jay Shetty's question helped increase my awareness of how I can better care for myself during low and high-stress periods. And here's what I noticed — during high-stress periods is exactly when self-care disappears first. The moments you need it most are the moments you abandon it fastest. You tell yourself you don't have time. You tell yourself you'll get back to it when things calm down. Things don't calm down. They never calm down. You have to calm yourself down in the middle of the chaos.

That starts with doing one thing for yourself. Every single day.

It doesn't have to be dramatic. It doesn't require a spa day or a vacation or some elaborate self-care ritual that takes two hours. It can be fifteen minutes of silence. A walk with no phone. Reading something that has nothing to do with work. Training your body. Cooking a meal you actually enjoy instead of eating whatever's fastest. Sitting outside and doing absolutely nothing without feeling guilty about it.

The bar is low. And most of us still aren't clearing it.

Here's what's really at stake.

Self-love, self-care, self-value, and self-esteem are not luxuries. They're not rewards you earn after everything else is handled. They are the foundation. Without them, everything you build sits on unstable ground. Your relationships suffer because you're giving from a deficit. Your work suffers because you're operating depleted. Your health suffers because you've deprioritized the only body you'll ever have.

You cannot offer your best self to others if you're neglecting yourself. That's not selfish to say. That's the most unselfish realization you'll ever have. Because the people around you deserve the version of you that's been taken care of. Not the burned-out, resentful, running-on-fumes version that's white-knuckling through every day.

Do something for yourself daily. Not when you feel like it. Not when you've earned it. Daily.

Ask the question tonight before you go to sleep. And answer it honestly.

What did I do for myself today?

If the answer is nothing — tomorrow needs to look different.

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Invest in yourself.