Did you just label yourself?
Are we too quick to let go of ourselves? To judge ourselves?
It is a bit ironic about our ability to be so kind and empathetic with others in situations but would hate ourselves if we were in their place. We give others the “You go girl! “ or “You got this!” literally whenever someone else feels like they can’t do it, yet fall behind when it comes to giving ourselves a pep talk.
I often wonder why.
Labeling yourself would only stick with you for a longer time. In reality, those labels keep changing. Think about the version of yourself a decade ago. Seem different?
Nothing is permanent.
Quoting Sheldon’s dialogue from the Big Bang Theory (S12 EP23): “The inevitability of change might be a universal constant.”
In Penny’s words, “The only thing that actually stays the same is that things are always changing.”
Now brace yourself for some graphs! Lots of learning to do!
As James Clear said, ”The 1 Percent Rule states that over time the majority of the rewards in a given field will accumulate to the people, teams, and organizations that maintain a 1 percent advantage over the alternatives. You don’t need to be twice as good to get twice the results.”
I realized that exercising every day helped me feel more connected to my surroundings. Believe me, it was not a feat achieved in a day.
I had to push myself to go to the park track every day amidst many external barriers. The impact was not visible on an everyday basis, I could feel invisibly visible improvements here and there. This routine became my routine. Each day around 5 pm my body would tell me to change into my sportswear and leave the house with my earphones and phone stocked up with a new playlist.
“Atomic Habits” by James Clear is a MUST READ.
Improvements can be in small things. Such as think of something you want to change. Could be anything. For example, you want to remove something toxic from your life. Something toxic means it does not serve you in any positive way and takes up your precious energy, leaving you drained.
We have been conditioned to forget ourselves and care for others. But think about it. Can we pour from an empty cup? No, right? So how can we help others if we cannot help ourselves?
I sympathize with the empathetic human beings that sometimes forget ourselves more often. I have been through it and still struggle sometimes, but again, I am a work in progress! :D
Work in progress is never linear. It is always filled with ups and downs. Some days you won’t feel like you are worth working upon. Some days, you won’t feel worthy of others' attention. There are good and not-so-good days.
Our expectations from ourselves need to be realistic for the graph to progress. Otherwise, the world looks difficult. Trying to have “Good vibes only” or being positive and progressive all the time has never happened, nor can it happen.
If you see this on social media, which you surely must have, then you’ve been shown an illusion of perfectionism, dear reader!
Now you must be wondering, that I showed you one graph with continuous progress and the next one with bumps and setbacks added in between.
Let me clear the confusion. The first graph is an ideal graph, which is something you could aim for. The second one, on the other hand, keeps you in reality, makes you aware that the road won’t be straight.
GRAPH ATTACK!
I assure you this is the last one. :D
Picture this graph as “quality of life” on the vertical axis, and “unreality/away from your intuition” on the horizontal axis.
What do you see?
The farther you are from reality the more your quality of life decreases.
In conclusion, if you take the “ROAD ALWAYS TAKEN”,(Sorry Robert Frost) you will end up drowning yourself in a pool of confusion and wonder how you reached there. Be kind to yourself.
