Perfection is the state or quality of being free or as possible. We always have a desire to be the best out of the best, but can we be the best? I am a person who strives for perfection in everything, from folding T-shirts to driving in the middle of the road. I need to be perfect at all times. I think it all originated from the environment I was growing up in. In South Asian culture, to be respectful to someone older than you, we don’t use names when calling them. In a way, we learn that acknowledging them without their name is the first sign of respectfulness. As I am the oldest sibling and cousin, they all call me 'didi’ which means older sister. Ever since childhood, everyone younger than me called me that out of respect. However, with this name came a lot of responsibility. We are indirectly the role models for the younger ones. The expectations of a well-paid job, making no mistakes, being academically independent and more. I did not realize until now that those listed expectations are spot-on examples of perfection. Since childhood, being put as a person to look up to made me get this image in my head where the main underlining is perfection. That kept me reflecting on everything I do in life. Just how I dress, talk, behave, the list can go on. Having this perception of myself prevented me from looking at myself any differently. The compliments and accomplishments I kept getting were digging the perfections more deeply in me. I have only come to realize the true meaning of perfection now. It started to take a toll on my mental and physical health. I was doing many extracurricular activities in a day from that role model imagery. I lost weight drastically from the sports and not letting my body reset. The stress was adding to it all. At one point, I couldn't let go of things that weren't done perfectly by me, I felt like a failure. Now I allow myself to make mistakes, I think of them more positively rather than the other way around All this being said, think of it like this. We are humans, but not always perfect ones. I started to think of it as a flower which has not bloomed yet. Though it does not look perfect like the others, we still put it in a vase on the dining table. This perspective leads me to strive for continuous improvement rather than unattainable perfection.
In the end, it is all about acknowledging our imperfections, celebrating our progress, and always being open to learning and growing! Janvi J
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As human beings, we strive for the feeling of comfortability. We often choose the safe, predictable road over the unknown… why is that? It's because uncertainty causes stress. Even though remaining in your comfort zone can be a good thing, it can also prevent you from further developping as a human being. According to goal cast, “The primary ingredient for a happy life very well may be progress, as recent positive psychology studies have pointed towards. Shawn Achor, positive psychologist and author of The Happiness Advantage, refers to happiness as “the joy you feel moving towards your potential.” Although I am an outgoing, talkative person, I often find it nerve wracking to speak in front of a large number of people. I decided to face that fear, and overcome it through my school’s leadership program, where I became a Youth Leader. I also decided to join student council, interact club and also took debate. Becoming a senior leader in my school was very important to me because I wanted to be able to provide guidance and support for my fellow peers. I enjoy this because it has enabled me to expand my delegation and leadership skills. Here are 10 Ways to Overcome Fear and Break Out of Your Comfort Zone according to Success 1. Take nothing for granted. 2. Switch up your routine. 3. Move toward your fears. 4. Give up control. 5. Try something new until you feel comfortable. 6. Ask the questions other people don’t like to. 7. Start conversations with strangers. 8. Agree to something you wouldn’t normally consider. 9. Get in front of the camera. 10. Keep a list of growth goals. I was forced to step outside of my comfort zone and exhibit confidence while directing a large number of people. My tasks were often to manage large groups of people and work collaboratively with my fellow leaders, and share ideas without the fear of judgment. This experience helped me grow, and now as a senior leader I am able to effortlessly guide and delegate tasks to my peers without hesitation. While I was once afraid of sounding bossy, I now realized that to be a successful and confident leader, one has to possess and exhibit strong initiative, and to lead through example. Through this, I was able to learn to find new confidence, which has positively impacted my school work and presentations as well, as I am able to get my point across in a quick and meaningful way. By improving my communication skills, I will continue to demonstrate integrity and be a successful leader.
Moral of the story, stepping outside of your comfort zone can be a very difficult, tedious process but once you finally do, you won't believe how many opportunities there are waiting for you. Check out https://www.goalcast.com/2017/08/22/comfort-zone-killing-you-how-to-beat-it/ for some for information on why you should step outside of your comfort zone. Nyah G I was laying in my bed trying to come up with a good blog topic. I wanted to write about something that’s relevant and relatable. But it seemed like any and every idea I had wasn't good enough. And that thought right there was when it hit me, so I let the words pour out and here we go. Take a minute to picture something for me. I want you to imagine a rock. This rock can be big, small, wide, thin, smooth or jagged. Got it? Cool. Imagine a beach next to a gorgeous, crystal clear ocean. Close your eyes and picture your rock, sitting half in the sand, about five feet away from the water. All of a sudden, it gets really windy. The ocean gets choppy, maybe the sky changes colour and whatever is on your beach (leaves, sand, etc) starts moving in the wind. The longer the wind blows, the higher the tide gets and eventually, the rock is only a few inches from the ocean. In case you haven’t noticed, this whole situation is a metaphor. You are the rock, the sand is anything holding you back, the ocean is everything you want and the wind is the push you need to accomplish your goals. My ocean was confidence, my sand was a negative mindset and bad thoughts like “I’m not good enough” and my wind has been a big mix up of things. If you read the title, then you’ll know that the wind is really what I wanted to talk about, especially because it will look different to me than it will to you. The “wind” is supposed to represent the things pushing you towards your goal (the ocean). I thought push was a good word because it can be applied to both the metaphor and the real meaning. This leads me to my first kind of specification thing. There’s a difference between push and shove. A push can still be gentle, like a cute little nudge or something not very hardcore. The harder you push, the more immediate your results will appear. But something super important to realise is that you absolutely need a balance of short and long term wind so that you will not only reach the ocean, but so that you will stay there. Tying this back into our metaphor, a stronger wind blows your rock closer to the ocean sooner. But your rock will never make it to the ocean with just short, strong gusts of wind, it needs to have a gentle breeze constantly moving it towards the water, even if it's at a slower rate. Hopefully this whole metaphor thing isn’t confusing you, the whole point was to make everything easier to understand but I’m switching back to real life now (for the most part). My wind changes a lot, but that is a very good thing because it means I am growing and learning and adapting. Right now, a lot of my bursts of wind look like this:
I am most definitely not at my ocean yet but I am proud of my movement and I will keep moving forward until I get to where I want to be. Stay safe and stay sane, - Nevada J |
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