Too often I end my day on a negative note. I look back and think of all the wasted hours. I harp on all that I did not accomplish for the day with promises of doing better the next. Not a very pleasant way to put myself to sleep. Such a habit does nothing constructive and really makes me feel bad. Self-flagellation may have been good for the soul of medieval saints, but it does nothing for a woman of today.
Why do we tend to focus on what we didn’t do rather than what we did accomplish? I think it is because we hold ourselves to a far higher standard than we should. We are not perfect, we are human. By putting ourselves down, we are holding ourselves back from achieving our goals.
So, here is my challenge to all. Every night, before you go to bed, sit down for five minutes and scribble out all that you did that day. You will be amazed at all that you did accomplish without thinking about it.
Yeah, maybe you didn’t write 1000 words today. But maybe you did get the litter box changed. Maybe you washed the mountain of clothes overwhelming your hamper. Perhaps you thought out a pesky conflict problem in your WIP. Perhaps you managed to floss your teeth and help the kids with their homework. Be proud of what you did rather than despondent over what you did not achieve. When you look at your list, two things will happen. You will be uplifted by your productivity and you will be motivated to accomplish more the next day. Good Luck with your “Been –Done” list.
