Good Enough
When I was younger, I thought if I set a goal and hustled hard, I could achieve anything. That’s the story they sell, right?
But reality hits hard. Sometimes, no matter how much you hustle, things just don’t go your way. You put in all that effort, but somehow it’s still not enough.
And don’t even get me started on that whole “Winners don’t quit, and quitters don’t win” spiel. Like, seriously? Winners quit stuff all the time. Look at J.K. Rowling. She “quit” on marriage and ended up creating Harry Potter! And there’s Paolo Coelho who bailed on law school to become a famous writer. Even Isaac Newton ditched school to become a physicist legend.
They knew when to say “no” because they understood you can’t do everything, no matter how hard you try. Imagine your life as a pie chart, with slices for family, career, health, social life, and all that jazz. But those slices aren’t fixed. When life throws a curveball, you gotta shuffle those percentages around.
When your parent gets sick and you bail on work to be there, you gotta take some from work and add it to family. When you’re knee-deep in a big project, you gotta swipe 10% from family and friends and give it to your career.
But what happens when everything hits the fan at once? It’s your sister’s birthday, you’ve got a project to wrap up, chores at home, your partner’s freaking out about work, and you’re trying to nail your master’s degree. Suddenly, you need 150% of yourself. But where do you find that extra 50%?
You chug coffee, pull an all-nighter, and try to do it all. But in the process, you’re robbing your future self. The next day, you’re wiped out and way less productive. You end up spending the day in bed, missing out on family time, even if it’s the weekend. You probably started with only 60% of yourself to begin with.
And that’s just one day. Imagine how many times you’ve done this to yourself. How much of yourself are you leaving for the future? Are you really giving your all, or are you just scraping by on what’s left?
We’re so obsessed with pleasing others that we forget about ourselves. We’d rather fake it than face the truth: we feel like we’re not good enough.
We care too much about what people think, molding ourselves to fit in. But deep down, we still feel empty sometimes. No amount of outside praise fills that void.
Work? It’s a grind, no doubt. But it shouldn’t suck the life outta you. I’ve learned that the hard way. It’s not about being a money-making machine. It’s about making a real impact, and doing something meaningful.
Sure, I’ve made mistakes. Who hasn’t? But I’ve also learned to pick myself up, dust myself off, and keep going. And you know what? I’m getting there. Someday, I’ll feel like I’m enough. Because I’ve been enough all along.
Life’s full of surprises, teaching us lessons we never saw coming. So let’s stop seeking validation from others. Take what matters, leave the rest. Be yourself, unapologetically. You’re enough, just as you are.
With love,
R
