S7 E3: Dani Bruflodt on hydration, social justice, and political engagement

Deep in a pandemic, an election cycle, and a world that looks vastly different than six months ago, we’re all a little worn out these days. But we also need to press ahead like never before. We wanted to talk to Dani Bruflodt on how she summons the energy to engage online around social justice, politics, and making a difference in the world -- and how hydration is her secret weapon to get it all done with some energy left over. 

Dani Bruflodt is a writer and creator who “talks loud on the internet”. She’s a native Minnesotan currently living the Universal-Healthcare dream life in Copenhagen, Denmark, and she would love for you to drink some water.

Resources from this episode: 

The Enneagram Institute has excellent resources to help you find your type. 

Dani’s hydration tracker for kids.

Plan Podcast Episode 029: How to achieve optimum hydration

 

Dani’s 7 tips for how to get engaged and make a difference: 

1. Know that it is never too late to become a better person. Feeling hypocritical stops a lot of us from joining movements or getting involved. You can wake up tomorrow and decide you’re going to be a better person.
2. Know that it is okay to change your mind, especially when you are presented with better information.
3. Pick one thing you’re passionate about. One cause that you really, truely, deeply feel passionate about. You don’t have to become an expert on everything immediately.
4. And then when you pick that thing, take time to step back. Do not rush in and expect to fix this issue that you’ve taken up. It’s especially important to pause and look to see who is already doing this work and fall in line with how to support them and continue their work rather than do anything that might interfere with work already being done.
5. It is okay to be wrong, and it is okay to say “I am not informed enough to speak on this topic”. Fear of being wrong, or the feeling that if you claim to be an activist you automatically have to know everything stops so many of us. No. It is OKAY to be wrong. It is a mark of intelligence to recognize when you’re wrong, learn better, and do better, and there is nothing wrong with being asked a question or being engaged in a conversation and saying “You know what, I don’t feel informed enough to speak on this.”
6. Know that there is probably not an end-point to the work. Whether it’s anti-racism or ending child hunger. Even if you ensure all children have full tummies, you still have to get up every day after that and ensure those programs stay afloat, that they have funding.
7. You have to remember to rest. Getting into the trenches with any form of activism is not for the faint of heart. It takes a toll on you physically and emotionally -- especially if you are a privileged white person who has rarely had to endure chronic stress -- this can really hit you like a brick wall. You have to learn to take breaks, to rest, to step away from the work for a moment and then get back in there.

 

Dani’s 3 groups of people we’re worried about offending and what to do instead: 

1. “Following”: Focus on gaining supporters, not followers. Focus on quality, not quantity. 
2. Family/Friends: Lean into the fact that if you lose them for being outspoken, they may not have been worth your time or energy to begin with.
3. Potential Clients or Collaborators: Trust that sharing your morals and values will help you attract clients and collaborations that align with you.  

 

Books we mentioned: 

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