Easy Does It

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to say this to myself over the years. First of all, I’m hyper-competitive. I want to be the best at what I do. That’s something an employer loves because it means you are always trying to deliver more than expected. Also, the type of work I do requires me to compete with other companies.  I’m even competing against myself (the result of the work I did at the last company I worked for means my new job is even harder – I’m trying to beat them when I created the strategy there).

I know when easy does it needs to come into play. I start feeling very restless.  I start obsessing about every aspect of the job.  I lose sight of the successes and focus on the areas of weakness as if they are all there is to show for my work.

Easy does it is particularly important for perfectionists and competitive people because we run the risk of running ourselves into the ground trying to reach the next level. We also run the risk of constantly assessing things as “not good enough” – hence, never able to enjoy the fruits of our labor.  Not good enough was the mantra of my childhood – do I really want to live that as an adult?