2020 Directors' Conference Closes with a Powerful Session on Self-Care

With the final of four sessions just concluded, the curtains have come down on our first ever Virtual School Nutrition Directors' Conference. Held under the theme “Be Excellent", this year's staging embraced the pivot to a virtual environment, stretching digital tools that met the challenge of keeping School Nutrition Directors connected, engaged, and in-tune with our slate of expert speakers.

We ended on a high with Dr. Raquel Garzon, founder of Revitalize Project, Inc and author of the book The Business of You – Leveraging Business Principles to Thrive in Life. "You're taking care of others – but who is taking care of you?" was among the early questions posed by Dr. Garzon to the more than 180 session attendees as she journeyed through the topic: The Neuroscience of Wellness.

Zoom screen

From identifying common wellness goals in areas such as nutrition, exercise, stress management, and sleep, to differentiating between the rational and emotional triggers of wellness behaviors, the session was replete with tools and strategies to 'train the brain, enhance wellness and be excellent'.

Directors were challenged to develop emotional agility, challenge their mindset and be more purposeful in their work and daily lives, through practicing mindfulness techniques that enhance self and thought regulation, and decrease stress, anxiety, and emotional reactivity.

The session was as interactive, using the Zoom annotate tool, as it was active, featuring a quick, but full aerobic work-out! The latter demonstrating the ease and practicality of including exercise, a key element in wellness, as part of even the most hectic workday.

Zoom screen Dr. Garzon guided the group through understanding the critical importance of discovering their purpose and making neuro connections that will help them reset and replenish in the interest of living happy and meaningful lives. In her final charge, Dr. Garzon said “bring the best of yourselves each day - never feel like it is self-indulgent, self-care is your superpower!"

Dr. Raquel Garzon, in her presentation on the Neuroscience of Wellness, completes the list of speakers in DC2020 Virtual: Be Excellent, which also included Joe Pettit on Growth Mindset; Dayle Hayes on Seizing the Moment: Fueling Excellence to the Frontlines and Debra Kibbe who presented on the theme School Nutrition Leadership Skills: Assess, Analyze and Apply with Debra Kibbe.

Each session in the DC2020 Virtual Conference series carries 2 professional credit hours for School Nutrition Personnel and is available on-demand here.