Managing Self-Expectations
I often have a hard time setting realistic expectation for myself. Mix that with being super picky and extremely detail-oriented (hello, fellow virgos) and we have a whole slew of difficulties. Though I am used to living with these somewhat setbacks (haha) and I have been this way for as long as I remember, it can still make my plans stretch longer than I would like and it’s one of those issues I have had to constantly work through. For instance, certain parts of my work that bother me or isn’t “good enough” for me, others see it as “character” so I am always asking for opinions to make sure I’m not just being Britni about it.
Is it because I am too hard on myself or is it that I am always seeking approval or acceptance?
I’m not complete sure, but I think that I tend to desire self-acceptance moreso than the approval from others.
The high expectations really become an issue when I’m making my task lists. I’ve touched on my process a few times in previous blog posts. But it gets to a point where I have it in my head that I’ll make/throw 50 pieces in one day, which is possible, but I am not a full time potter/maker yet so I have to be true to my own energy and limitations.
Those boundaries that I am constantly reminding myself of is probably the most important aspect of running PuppiMudworksCo, aside from being hella organized.
My solution when this happens, when I expect so so much from myself, is to always give myself wiggle room.
ie, this past Friday night, I had about 4 to-do’s on my list but outside forces interfered. It was too humid to apply my spray resin and the kiln had not cooled down enough for me to load in the first bisque fire and it was too late to sand wood on the balcony of my apartment (noise) by the time I got back home.
Yeah, all of this really sucked because your girl has things to do! And I could have probably accomplished a few other things on my list (like throwing the most recent custom orders or cleaning out the litter box completely) in place of those tasks, but I took it as a sign and straightened up around the home and went to bed early.
I feel like when this happens to me, life interfering at the most opportune time, I must listen and stop because that really is God telling me to take some time to chill.
And I am constantly telling myself every week “after next week, I’ll be caught up.” But I need to get real with myself and maybe you do too, will we ever really be caught up?! If you’re the person to have dreams and goals and aspirations, you will always be looking ahead. True, it is vital to sit and enjoy your accomplishment and where you’re at right now every time you reach a new goal, but we are strivers and thrivers so we are absolutely crazy about crushing it, and no, we will probably never really be caught up but that’s okay, right? Right.
Define adulting: an infinitely growing working to-do list; accomplish one, add two more tasks
Anyone else feel that?
How have I tackled this?
My current focus is to have all of the little bite-sized pieces written down so that in the mornings when I have an extra15/20 minutes, I can be doing something minute, small, tiny that will push myself to my final goal. I keep this list on the bar in the kitchen so that its easily-accessible and I have no excuses.