Thoughtful Quotes to Live By

****I thought it would be fun to play with some quotes in my blog. My friend Chellie and I were talking about different ideas for blog topics and she suggested finding a quote and writing my thoughts on it. I thought it was BRILLIANT! Tell me what you think about it, cause I might try and make it a weekly thing.****


Today’s Quote:

They can because they think they can. – Virgil

I’m certainly not the only person in the world who feels insanely frustrated with lack of ability to do something well. I often get discouraged because I see somebody do something absolutely incredible, and I think ‘I would LOVE to do this, but there is absolutely no way I am able to.’ So, I don’t bother. I feel a little like that when I’m writing. I see people write and they are so good. Other people flock to them like bees to a flower. Why should I write when others are better?

I also tend to make a lot of excuses for why I can’t do something. A lot of times it boils down to something in my subconscious that is saying ‘you can’t do this, you can’t do this’. “Oh, I’m too busy.” “Oh, I have to do this first.” “Oh, what’s the point if nobody’s going to notice?” I just board the excuse train and don’t get anything done.

My therapist (yes, I DO see one) constantly tells me that I’m very much a perfectionist. The definition of perfectionism, at least the one I feel most applies to me, is a disposition to feel that anything less than perfect is unacceptable. A lot of times you’ll find perfectionists only apply that standard to themselves. My dad is different in the fact he applies his perfectionism to people around him: his coworkers, I would assume his girlfriend, me. If I don’t maintain his image of what is perfect, then he freaks out. There are those types of perfectionists too.

But I am a perfectionist in that I don’t feel like I am good enough. When I am often looking at another’s creations, I think that it is AMAZING! Terrific, wonderful, flawless. Something I could never create nearly as well. What they made is perfect, in my opinion. But is that realistic? Probably not so much. I have to realize that they probably feel insecure about their own creations; they notice the flaws, the inconsistencies, and the mistakes that they make too. Chances are, they do probably feel some of what I feel: that it’s not good enough.

Perfectionists like me also make excuses because they don’t want to put effort into anything they don’t feel like they are going to do well in. By choosing to take the excuse route, we are often labeled as ‘careless’ and ‘lazy’. That really isn’t the case. We care immensely about some things, but often it gets very stressful to put that much care and thought into everything.

Yet, every day I see something incredible made by another person’s hands. What sets them apart to somebody like me though, is that they believe they can do it, and they JUST DO IT. They don’t let things like perfectionism stop them from doing what they want to do. They don’t make excuses, they don’t give up, they don’t get scared about performance, and they don’t let other people stop them. Get this- They CAN because they THINK they can. Isn’t that cool? And when they do, chances are people will appreciate it! Even if it’s not absolutely terrific, at least somebody is going to appreciate that the individual had the courage to do what they wanted to do.

I think about all the different instances where I let these fears and excuses stop me from doing what is interesting. I know this quote isn’t going to be ‘life-shattering’ and things aren’t going to make a 180. I will still make fears and excuses, because I’m human and I’m imperfect. But, when I feel like something is stopping me from doing something that I would really enjoy, I plan to try something different now. This time, I will remember that everybody faces the same obstacles that I face. I will pray for guidance and direction, and I will go to friends and family for encouragement and motivation. I will also tell myself repeatedly that I CAN do it. If they can do it, so can I.

I can, because I think I can.

Fin