Celebrate!
There is no end of life report card
There’s nothing wrong with high standards. I’m all for them. I entered the weekend with plans to make progress on my book, write several blogs, string lights up in the backyard, and get the lawn mowed. I felt like a failure when I didn’t meet any of these self-imposed goals. You see, I’ve had a lifelong struggle with perfectionism. Author Ryan Holiday captured it well when he said: “Perfectionism rarely begets perfection or satisfaction—only disappointment.”
If I could give 25-year-old Tarek a gift, it would be this: Stop and appreciate how far you’ve come. Here are a few life events that I learned from:
I didn’t have to work hard in high school to get A’s. However, getting my first C in freshman chemistry made me realize I needed to increase my effort to succeed in life.
Others made fun of me in junior high, which made me compassionate toward people who didn’t quite fit in.
Last July, I started a personal growth blog that I emailed to around 20 family and friends. I didn’t think anyone would care about it, but now, more than 200 people read it weekly.
Surviving brain surgery opened the door to pursuing personal growth and a life that I never knew existed.
Of course, you have your own list. Know this. God isn’t sitting up there waiting to zap you because you don’t think you measure up to some arbitrary measuring stick. There will be no report card grading your performance at the end of your life.
Should you set high goals? Yes! However, you must be intentional about shutting down that inner critic who says you’re a failure for not doing everything perfectly. The path to doing that is through appreciation for how far you’ve come.
It’s a miracle that you are here on this earth, living and breathing air. There is no one like you. You are a gift to the world around you - exactly as you are. Also, you are much farther along than you think. Appreciate all that you’ve overcome and accomplished.
Make it a wonderful week by making one person’s life better. We’ll talk again next Sunday!
Thank you for reading! Would you consider forwarding this email to a friend who might be from benefit? They can click the link below to receive a weekly message on making personal growth a way of life. Thank you!
Perfection will only come when we get to heaven with the LORD. It is not attainable in this life for anyone. I married you for who you are….and love you just the way you are.♥️
Great insights on perfectionism Tarek. If only we could go back and teach some of these lessons to our 25 year old selves.
Brene Brown once said, "Perfectionism is a twenty-ton shield we lug around thinking it will protect us when I'm fact, it's the thing that's really preventing us from taking flight."