Today I was kind of floundering through a bunch of tasks and not really feeling like much was getting accomplished. Procrastination was getting in my way. As one of a long list of tasks I was doing instead of settling into work, I called my mom. Surely, a pep talk from mom will get me motivated. But, when my mom answered she seemed pooped out and in need of her own pep talk. So no pep talk from mom . . . What to do?
This got me thinking. Maybe I should be able to give myself a pep talk. Don’t worry. I didn’t go into the bathroom and start talking to myself (Cute, little Jessica with her daily affirmations YouTube video* can pull it off. Me, not so much!). Instead, I whipped out a letter of encouragement to myself. Just sitting there at my desk, fingers flying over the keys, and 5 minutes later I was focused and back to work.
Sure, maybe this started out as just another manifestation of procrastination. And, yeah, I was kind of just goofing around. But what I discovered is that it worked. I gave myself permission to say to myself all the encouraging and pump myself up things my mom would have said. AND in that same vein, I did not allow myself to say all of the beat myself up stuff that my mom would not have put up with. In fact each time I started being negative about having spent the day spinning my wheels, I imagined telling it to my mom and her saying, “Now, Ruthie stop that!!”
This was a cool exercise. I think I’ll use it in the future. We don’t all have a mom or friend to call for a pep talk, but we do all have ourselves.
Smile. Be happy!
Ruth
*Jessica’s viral affirmations video.
P.S.: If you can give yourself a pep talk then you can also write yourself a Report Card.
Me in the Mirror Smiley