When I make a decision that doesn’t turn out the way I expect, I tend to mull it over, pull it apart and generally run thinking about it into the ground until I come to peace with the fact that the results weren’t too bad and that everyone does something at some point that they wish they had done a different way.
I feel like I’m out there all by myself because most of the time I am the decision maker for things involving my life.
In other words, I can feel like a Fruit Loop in a world full of Cheerios.
I feel as though I am the only person capable of screwing up even though I know in my head this isn’t true.
But in my heart it feels true!
I try to figure out what I can learn from doing something the incorrect or inefficient way so that in the future I will know how to do it a better way. Notice I didn’t say the right way because I’m not sure that there is always a tried and true right way.
These are the times when I have to reign myself in and practice being kind to myself. I know that I have a tendency to be hard on myself and sometimes I think that comes from being the oldest of six children and having my mother constantly put me in charge of my younger siblings.
I feel responsible for fixing things and trying to make things run smoothly and at the same time that makes me think that I should know how to do things around the house or at work that no one has ever shown me how to do. And in between all that I think I should be a better friend and a better sibling and a better daughter.
These are the times when I have to reign myself in and put the brakes on this kind of thinking. Get real, I say to myself. Ask for help. That’s when my reality check comes. In asking for help, usually a great friend will listen to what I am trying to do or already did and usually look at me calmly and say “That’s too much. Why are you trying to do that all by yourself?”
We probably all need to be kinder to ourselves. I know I do. I remind myself that I am only one person capable of doing only so much. I know most of us are carrying a lot of responsibility and a lot of stress so today let’s give ourselves a break.
Let’s be positive and take pride in how far we have come and how far we will continue to go.
Let’s join the Cheerios!
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