Dr. Kortni (00:00)
Welcome to the Compassionate Newsroom, your gateway to transforming the heart and soul of journalism. I'm your host, Dr. Kortni Alston Lemon. I'm a former news director and television reporter turned happiness scholar. Now I train news leaders and journalists worldwide, teaching them how to cultivate workplace wellbeing and resilience with positive psychology. Each week, join me as I share evidence-based strategies.
and talk with some of the most inspiring people in the industry, including news leaders, journalists, trainers, and mental health experts. Together we'll share actionable approaches to help you. Imagine a newsroom that not only cares about the story, but profoundly values the people behind them. A place where compassion is the competitive advantage. Don't just listen, become part of this transformative journey. Subscribe to and share The Compassionate Newsroom. Let's champion a more supportive,
healthier and happier newsroom culture, one episode at a time.
Dr. Kortni (01:03)
Happy Wellbeing Wednesday and welcome back to the Compassionate Newsroom podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Kortni Well, today is a special day. Well, maybe I should say today, the eve of today is a special day. My birthday is coming up and I am so super excited. And today I thought, you know what?
I'm gonna talk about the greatest gift, the greatest gift we can ever give ourselves, self-compassion. Now, self-compassion is not just a nice to have, it's something we really need, especially in high pressure jobs like journalism. Now, I figured this out the hard way. In the beginning of my news career, I barely practiced self-care. Meals were rush, and that's if I even managed to eat
anything at all and my lifestyle was just chaotic. But let me take you back to when I was reporting. In Midland, Texas, start of my career. At that time of my life, I was working out two hours each day and it was a really an integral part of my daily life. It was my routine. It was my release.
Now, I share this to illustrate that sometimes in life, we can really be very focused on our self-care and there are other times, not as much. And that's okay. Life happens and we must always, always give ourselves grace. Take for another example, a challenging period in my life. Shortly after starting my career in Philadelphia as a reporter,
I faced an unimaginable tragedy. My first husband was tragically killed in an accidental shooting by a friend just 86 days after our wedding. Now at the same time, my mother was fighting a rare cancer. She was diagnosed just weeks before we got married. Now she battled bravely, bravely.
for 17 years and I cherish that even though I graduated with my PhD and she was unable, she and my father were unable to go to my graduation because sadly she started to transition around that time. But I'm grateful for the fact that I had a chance to show her my degree and I showed her my degree while she was on her deathbed She never saw me take that degree to new heights.
as a happiness scholar, and nor did she witness seeing me marry again to an amazing man who is not only my husband, but he's also an incredible journalist and just an incredible human being. And that's my husband, Ken Lemon. Now she didn't even have a chance to get to see me become a bonus mom to my wonderful son, Matt.
These experiences are heartbreaking. And as they were, they taught me something. They really taught me the value of self-compassion. we must be kind to ourselves. And that can be hard, because accepting that while we might not always be perfect in managing our self-care, our wellbeing,
it's crucial that we just keep striving, keep adjusting, and most importantly, keep granting ourselves grace. Now, one of the individuals I greatly admire is Dr. Kristen Neff. She is the leading researcher on self-compassion, and her exploration of its dual aspects is incredible. I've often talked about Dr. Neff
really continuously through the episodes of the podcast. And I will say that Dr. Neff's work and the Carter's, President Carter and Mrs. Carter are really the inspiration by the name of the Compassionate Newsroom. So outside of my work for those who may not know in terms of being a happiness scholar,
I was appointed by former first lady, Mrs. Carter to serve on her advisory board, The Rosalyn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism at the Carter Center. And that is an amazing honor. But one of the things I really valued and cherished was having an opportunity to learn even more.
about the incredible work they've done, around the world led by compassion. So Dr. Neff introduces us to not just a tender side of self-compassion, which involves comforting and reassuring ourselves, but she also shows us something that I love to talk about, and that is the fierce side. Yes, I said it.
The fierce side. She teaches us that self-compassion can involve taking decisive steps, setting boundaries, and even fighting injustice. Now, according to Dr. Neff, the essential question of self-compassion, and I often share this in my training sessions with news leaders and journalists, but I often say, what do you, what do I need right now?
Ask yourself that question. And this is all inspired by Dr. Neff. And more specifically, what do I need to help alleviate my suffering? That's so important. Because one of the things she loves to share, and I love to also reflect on it, is being a best friend to yourself.
Sometimes what we need is to accept ourselves in all our human imperfection and to love ourselves as we are in the moment. However, self-compassion isn't just about that soft and gentle, as I mentioned, right? Dr. Neff reminds us that it can be fierce.
She shares, a herd of cattle is stampeding towards us, it's not the time for self-acceptance, it's the time for action. Fierce self-compassion involves protecting, providing for, and motivating ourselves. She explains that it can be like a mama bear who fiercely protects her cubs when threatened.
She shares the value of making sure that we understand the importance of that fierce energy of really nurturing ourselves and caring for ourselves.
Dr. Neff helps us practice protective self-compassion. And I like this. She calls them protective self-compassion breaks. And it speaks on strength from our shared humanity. She teaches us to affirm, stand with others, or all human beings deserve just treatment and me too. She encourages us to offer ourselves the same kindness as I shared earlier.
that we would extend to a dear friend needing courage. Now, Dr. Neff not only provides scientific research, but also mindful meditations that she offers online to help center ourselves. And these are some resources that I often share in my trainings as well. I will provide a link to her website in the show notes so you can explore.
these incredible resources for yourself.
Well, this was a short episode and I want to hear from you in regards to that. I have been experimenting with some times
I really would love to hear your feedback. You can go to thecompassionatenewsroom.com and you can actually leave a voicemail, And in that voicemail, you can share your thoughts about the podcast and your thoughts about, do you like the interview segments? How do you feel about these small bites that can really help carry you?
along the way. Well, thank you so much for joining me today, helping me really celebrate my birthday. I hope it has inspired you to prioritize self-compassion. It is truly a gift you can give yourself every day. And remember this, I'm always cheering you on.
Until next time, take care and keep cultivating that inner kindness.
Dr. Kortni (09:10)
for tuning into the Compassionate Newsroom podcast. Together we can transform workplace wellbeing in news. If you found value in today's episode, please share it with a colleague to help foster a supportive environment in the industry. And don't forget to subscribe and also visit our website for more resources at thecompassionatenewsroom.com.
