EMBRACE YOURSELF HOW TO
EMBRACE YOURSELF PROFESSIONAL

There are times when I can’t help but question if I’m remaining stagnant and hindering my growth in certain areas of my life because of fear of the unknown, fear of failing, fear of change, and fear of pains. Boundaries may include: setting a designated time for work, communicating your needs to others, knowing your mental, physical, and emotional bandwidth, saying “ no” to self or others (I know, that’s a hard one), not taking on more responsibility than you have to, and creating space for you to breathe and rest. Boundaries communicate that you know yourself and respect yourself enough to not sacrifice who you are and what you need for the sake of striving, approval, or acceptance.

EMBRACE YOURSELF PROFESSIONAL

If we don’t, we’ll find ourselves burned out and struggling to identify/meet our personal and professional needs. It’s important to establish boundaries with ourselves, those around us, and our responsibilities. Boundaries are guidelines, limits, or rules that we create to identify and foster a safe environment for us and others to navigate and engage in. Once I’ve evaluated my expectations, I define and establish healthy boundaries.

EMBRACE YOURSELF HOW TO

When we take a moment to evaluate the standards and expectations in our lives, it gives us the opportunity to know how to respond to those standards. Is this a standard that I’d place on someone else? Is it healthy or do I feel an unbearable weight mentally, emotionally or physically?ĭoes this standard give me the opportunity to enjoy and grow in the process? How do we define what’s unrealistic? I’ve learned to look at the standards I’ve set at work, school, or projects, and take a moment to evaluate the standard. The need for perfection leaves us creating standards that are neither reasonable nor provide space for us to breathe, pace ourselves, and experience the process. I’ve even had supervisors, family members, and mentors tell me to relax. I have often found that I am harder on myself than anyone else. Sometimes, my stress, frustration, and disappointment are self-imposed due to the unrealistic standards I’ve set. What I’ve Learned as a Therapist (Part 1): The Power and Problem of Simple Truths Monica DiCristina Iridescent Women 1559 217 AugAug 800 450 By no means am I an expert in this area of life-I am still learning, and I hope we can learn together! As I learn, here are five things I’m doing to embrace grace: I’ve been more focused on what others think of me, rather than how I can cultivate my own uniqueness. I must admit, there are many times when I didn’t give myself grace or fully embrace the grace that has been given to me. When we focus on giving our best, based on our capacity, we take the pressure off the need for perfection. When we focus on doing “the best,” we’re more concerned about an image or a standard that was probably never asked of us. However, we should consider our perspective. We should desire to do well in any capacity we have.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to do well and excel. As I ponder the stress, pressure, self-negligence, and self-sabotage I’ve experienced, I’ve been able to identify the culprit- unrealistic expectations. I’m sure you can relate-no one wakes up each day thinking, “Today’s a great day to make a mistake!” Maybe you’re a “recovering perfectionist” like me.

I hated to not dot every “i” or cross every “t”. I strived for 110% everywhere I went and with everything I did. I’ve spent a lot of time, money, resources, and energy attempting to be… perfect, which leaves no room for grace.Īs I grew up, my obsessive need for perfection grew, too. But if the letter “R” didn’t curve right, or I made a small error, then I’d crumble the entire sheet of paper, throw it away, and start over. Sounds a bit extreme, right? I agree. When I was a little girl, I’d write my name on a piece of paper, hoping to write it perfectly.

Embrace yourself