One Activist's Oath, First Vow Not to Burn Out

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November 15, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.

- -Jack Kornfield- -

One Activist's Oath, First Vow Not to Burn Out

Mushim Patricia Ikeda is a teacher, artist and activist. She's worked tirelessly for the upliftment of the marginalized. Through her work, Ikeda realized that the major danger for activists is burnout. â€œWe need tools to address and prevent burnout and we need to go to the root of it,â€ she said. It was in her earlier years during activist work that she recognized an acceptance, if not cultivation, of a mindset that understood being an activist meant martyring oneself to whatever cause they chose to work for. Burnout was expected. Everyone was expected to work themselves into the ground and always be unable to make rent.â€ she said. Ikeda urges social activists to take steps to fight that bias and actively work to avoid burnout in order to be able to ultimately do the most good. { read more }

Be The Change

Take some time to consider the questions Ikeda suggests for those working on behalf of social justice: "How can you make your life sustainableâ€"physically, emotionally, financially, intellectually, spiritually? Are you helping create communities rooted in values of sustainability, including environmental and cultural sustainability? Do you feel that you have enough time and space to take in thoughts and images and experiences of things that are joyful and nourishing? What are your resources when you feel isolated or powerless?"

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