The Shoulds

From time to time, I suffer from a condition called, "The Shoulds."  It's a very common condition that can come about daily, weekly or even seasonally (gasp).  The good news is, once I take the time to reflect on the effects, I can shake it off before it becomes a more severe condition, sometimes referred to as the, "Debbie Downer," or the, "I'll Never be (fill in the blank here)," or, when experiencing extreme symptoms, the, "No One Wants to be Around Me, Including Me Syndrome."

Examples of "The Shoulds" include:

·         I should be exercising

·         I should be sleeping

·         I should be cleaning

·         I should drive faster

·         I should drive slower

·         I should be making my Christmas gifts right now

·         I should stay late at work to finish this

·         I should be more patient

·         I should be doing something more productive than typing this

Some people experience "The Should Nots" instead of (or in addition to) "The Shoulds."  

Examples of the "Should Nots" include:

·         I shouldn't be eating this

·         I shouldn't be buying this

·         I shouldn't take a nap

·         I shouldn't be wasting my time playing this game

·         I shouldn't care about this

·         I shouldn't do this

The best way I have found to deal with "The Shoulds" and "The Should Nots" is to have an attitude adjustment that consciously points out that I AM GOOD ENOUGH.  Doing or not doing something isn't going to change that; I don't need the self-inflicted guilt to slap my ego's face.

Goodness knows there is more than enough negativity surrounding us and the last thing we need to do to ourselves is self- inflict more negativity.  Sometimes I think if more people join the I AM GOOD ENOUGH movement, we will have a lot less negativity.  Who's with me?