Expectations

Yesterday, I realized I was holding an unrealistic expectation for myself. When I measured up to the expectation I would praise myself and when I didn’t I would punish myself. I don’t think anyone would be able to live up to this expectation I was holding myself to.

An expectation for self is usually something we think we ‘should’ live up to. What life ‘should’ look like. It’s us trying to match ourselves to an ideal version that we see. That ideal version of ourselves or life, often lacks the complexity of the reality. The layers of real life. The expectation isn’t real.

When I realized I was holding this expectation, I immediately felt a sense of relief. The awareness of the expectation brought on clarity of how ridiculous it was to expect that of myself (no judgement is present here). And that brought on an acceptance, which released me from that expectation.

What expectations are you holding yourself to?