How Am I Doing?

We’re built with inner drives to accomplish and succeed. Toddlers get frustrated when their Lego towers collapse because they want to succeed at building towers. We get frustrated when we lose our temper or go to bed too late (yet again) because we want to succeed at reaching our personal goals. Goal-setting is as important to us as succeeding; we instinctively and voluntarily establish our challenges — things we want to get done today, this year, this decade, this lifetime.

Reviewing our progress is an important part of the process. We want to know if we’re moving in the right direction, if we’re where we should be on the trajectory. Regular monitoring and self-evaluation are essential to achieving our eventual success whether the realm is character development, learning, health concerns, spiritual development, financial goals, career milestones, or relationship goals.

We can ask for other people’s feedback when we feel it will assist us along our path.

However, many of us are over-reliant on others’ opinions. In fact, we can be quite anxious about it. Do they think I’m doing okay? Do I look good enough — in their opinion? What do they think of my kids? Are they cute enough, smart enough, and accomplished enough?