You will all be *shocked* to learn that I often fall short of my own expectations. A consistent piece of feedback I have received is that I am "too hard on myself", probably because I am tormented by grief/guilt/shame for my failures. I want to do so much more, for myself and for the people I care about, but at my lowest ebb even small tasks can feel impossible.
I understand that I have challenges that are not visible from the outside. Many of my shortcomings are not character flaws, but amount to a disability. I want to give myself grace, but when I let myself "off the hook" I accomplish even less! I think I have come to rely on the pressure I put on myself to compensate for my struggles with motivation.
If I push too hard, I hit my threshold of stress and become useless. If I take it too easy, I stop even pretending like I'm working towards something. At my best I have both self-compassion and diligence, finding strategies to work on my goals as best I'm able. At my worst I think I "can't" accomplish X, and hide my face in games and diversions.
What attitude do you find most helpful when you need to rise to the challenge? How do you hold yourself accountable without adding unnecessary strife?