These Things

We are hard on ourselves.

We have things we want to work on. Things we don’t think we handle as well as we should, things we want to change. Things we see others doing well, things that we don’t see in ourselves.

We all have these things.

These things that make us feel as though we’re less- that we’re not good enough, that we’re not up to par with the vision of what we could be.

It’s not easy to be so hard on yourself.

Some of these things, we need to accept. Things about ourselves that are just going to be that way. Things that separate us from others for the better. Things that make us, us.

But some of these things, we can change- and for that, we are lucky.

I am a worrier. I worry about being at the professional level I need to be at when I graduate. I worry about getting into a grad school that I won’t even be applying to for many years to come. I worry about what my professors will say each day about different projects.

I even worry about how much I worry (seriously?).

These things I worry about, these different characteristics, goals and accomplishments that I stress over obtaining and achieving are all things that I can work on, things that I can change.

By turning your anxieties about yourself, your insecurities, and the things you need to work on into goals, you are one step closer to being who you really want to be.

The fact that you have the knowledge of these things, is a blessing in itself.

By identifying what you want to improve on, you have already recognized your shortcomings and you can begin to put a plan in motion to improve on them- and that is something to be proud of.

We should never stop growing, never stop improving.

Next time you think about something you don’t like about yourself, you can either sulk and beat yourself up, or you can figure out how to change it-whether that’s through acceptance or through a new goal. Ultimately, see your perceived shortcomings, as opportunities for growth.

Recognition is the first step, what’s next is up to you.