Am I Doing It Right?
Listen to this post on my podcast: Journal with Jenny
Am I doing it right? How many times have I asked myself this question? Millions. How many times have you asked it?
I’m constantly second guessing myself. I’m often worrying I did something wrong or wondering if I let someone down. Do you feel this way?
There is so much to balance - mommy, wife, daughter, teacher, friend, homeowner…the list goes on. Don’t get me wrong - I love my life! I have written myself into the beautiful life, but sometimes it feels overwhelming because so much is beyond our control, ya know?
I understand you might be in a swirl of commotion at the moment with kids running amuck, or maybe you’re sitting next to your parent in the hospital, or perhaps you’re on the train to work, but grab a journal or a scrap of paper along with your favorite pen or a pencil you just found in the junk drawer. Heck, grab a crayon if you need to! It really doesn’t matter.
Am I doing it right?
Take a few minutes to make a list.
What’s heavy on your heart that makes you wonder: Am I doing it right?
Leave the page open and write for three minutes.
Today, mine would look something like this:
*My youngest has been struggling. It hurts my heart to know she is not feeling confident, and she feels nervous in certain situations. Now I’m wondering if I should have intervened earlier, if I should have …. if I should have…. if I should have….
*My dad went into the nursing home six months ago because his Alzheimer’s has taken his mobility from him. I wonder if I should go see him more, if I should bring my kids to see him more… if I should… if I should…. if I should….
*When my husband has been working non-stop because he farms, and the crops demand his attention, I know he gets disappointed that I don’t come out to the farm more often, but I feel like I have so much to do at home, school, and with the kids that it just hasn’t been my priority. To keep our marriage strong, I should go out to the farm more often, I should pack him a lunch… I should… I should… I should…
Does your list have a pattern of “shoulds” too? Or maybe yours is more a list of things like…Am I being a good mom?
Is this lesson plan for my students effective or will my boss like this presentation?
Ugh.
When you look at your life in this way, you can easily get caught up in all the things you are NOT doing.
All those darn shoulds.
All these questions.
Then you feel like you are not doing anything right.
But writing helps you to turn things around and see what you ARE doing right!
I want you to try something.
Take one of those things you questioned and write down all the things you HAVE done or PLAN to do. Take another three minutes to write these down.
When I wrote about all the things I have done to try to help my youngest daughter, I was surprised to see all the things I was taking action on and exploring for my daughter. It shifted my thinking and helped me realize all that I am doing and all the possibilities there are for her.
Have you written down what you have done or could do?
How does it feel? Is there a change in your perspective?
I bet you are surprised at all you have already done or all the ideas you have for solutions or all of the things you plan to do.
Sometimes we get caught up in our minds, but if we shake our brains awake to what we have done, what we are capable of, or what we plan to do, we realize just how “right” we are doing things. Because the only “right” way to do something is to TRY. That’s all we can ask of ourselves because in the end, I truly believe we are all just doing the best we can.
Are you struggling with starting to journal or sticking with it? Get my free download “Learn how to journal” where I let you in on my morning journaling ritual.
Please comment below to let me know what you wrote about or learned from this. I would love to hear from you!
Other blog posts you may like…
