Successful?


Last week I felt inspired* to buy myself a new beautiful hardback journal Reader

(*OK what happened was I bought a notebook as a gift for someone else, and then felt jealous of that person getting a new notebook, so I had to buy one for myself too).

This journal is a space for me to write about my aspirations for adventures, milestones, and achievements.

But, I find it tricky to think about the future without getting struck down by a case of the ‘shoulds’.

  • I should be doing better
  • I should have already achieved that
  • I should be there by now
  • I should’ve taken this route instead
  • I should’ve tried this thing earlier

As soon as I have a destination in mind, my inner child starts yelling ‘Are we nearly there yet?’.

Here are two prompts (plus a bonus question) that help me move past the 'shoulds'.

I will be successful when……

I am already successful because…..

And then, if I’m in a reflective mood, I’ll go through both lists and notice: ‘Which of these success-markers are mine, and which were suggested/insisted by someone else’.

I haven’t done any New Year type planning or daydreaming yet - so I’m doing this exercise tomorrow (Fridays are my day off), in my new journal.

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