Wednesday; July 22

I have always been uncomfortable with the phrase “I did my best”.  In all reality, when I look back on what I did – I probably could have done better.  While this might help me not be dismissive of poor work, it also adds to the challenge of feeling like I am not living up to my potential.  As I thought about this internal conflict recently, I came up with a few ways that might help me find a compromise:
1.  Under-promise and over-deliver.  I am apt to get into a bind if I exaggerate what I can (or will) do.  Maybe the best way to avoid letting people down is to only pledge what we know we can do and then do it.  If we are able to do more than we promised, that is a bonus for everyone.
2.  Hold myself accountable for what can accomplish and what I do.  Sometimes I don’t do my best because I just don’t put forth the effort.  Sure, I can claim that I have done my best, but am I being deceptive to others and myself?  Continually conducting a self-audit might be just what we need to do to be more productive.
3.  Allow for failure, but don’t excuse it.  There are times I mess up and let people down – that is human, but that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be easily excusable.  When we fail, we need to admit it and learn from it – and if it causes us some angst, that’s not a bad thing because being uncomfortable with failure can lead us to improvement in the future.
          I don’t know that I will ever feel good about “doing my best”, but when I focus on putting forward a “good faith effort”, maybe I can deal with the truth.  When I do that, I hope that the Good Lord and others might cut me some slack through forgiveness and understanding.
         Think About It!

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