133. Lowered Expectations
Do you set lofty goals for yourself only to feel you fell slightly short?
Listen into this love note today - be kind to yourself - take some good advice 💖
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Transcript
Hello darling heart and welcome to the Drink Less Live better podcast.
-:This is the podcast that helps you to see that drinking less doesn't need to be stressful, lonely, or boring.
-:I'm your host, Sarah Williamson, and I decided to have a year alcohol free as a little life experiment and haven't looked back.
-:With my experience in training, I now help other people with their alcohol free or drink less adventures.
-:You can find out more and sign up to my 5 day drink less challenge at drink less live better dot com.
-:I'm here to tell you that you can relax, connect, and have fun without alcohol in your life.
-:Join me here each week to find out how. Today we're talking about lowered expectations.
-:In a world that often celebrates high achievers and perfectionism, the idea of lowered expectations may seem counterintuitive.
-:However, I think it might be important to understand that having high expectations can lead to disappointment, stress, and burnout.
-:Lowered expectations, when approached with kindness and practicality, may offer a path to a more balanced life.
-:Let's explore the reasons why setting realistic and compassionate expectations for ourselves is crucial for our personal and professional well-being and success.
-:The perils of unrealistically high expectations include stress, anxiety, burnout, lowered self esteem and some lowered expectations
-:may bring about some balance, resilience and self compassion. Let's explore, shall we? Stress and anxiety.
-:Setting exceedingly high expectations for ourselves can lead to overwhelming stress and anxiety.
-:The relentless pursuit of perfection often results in a constant fear of falling short, which takes a toll on our mental and emotional health.
-:When we fail to meet our lofty goals, the pressure and self criticism intensify, creating a vicious cycle of stress.
-:No one needs that, least of all when we've inflicted it on ourselves. Burnout.
-:The pursuit of huge goals may well lead to burnout when we push ourselves beyond our limits to reach those unreasonably high
-:expectations, we do risk depleting our physical and emotional reserves.
-:Burnout not only affects our productivity and creativity, but also poses serious health risks.
-:Far better to notice and stop in our tracks before we are too far down this particular path. Low self esteem.
-:High expectations can negatively impact our self esteem.
-:When we repeatedly fall short of our goals, it's easy to internalize a sense of failure and inag in
-:adequacy. There we go. Inadequacy. Oh, I could edit that out, but I'm not going to.
-:In turn, this erodes our self worth and can have long term consequences for our self confidence.
-:I say no to all of this. Let's consider lowering the bar. Let's reconsider our expectations for ourselves.
-:Let's take a breath and think about the following. Balance.
-:If we lower our expectations, we might be able to find some balance in our lives.
-:Striving for excellence is commendable perhaps, but it's equally important to understand our limitations and respect the boundaries
-:of our physical, emotional, and spiritual selves.
-:By setting more realistic goals, we can strike a balance somewhere between ambition and self care. Resilience. Lowered expectations for foster resilience.
-:What is the matter with me today? Let's try again. Lowered expectations foster resilience.
-:When we set achievable goals, we're better equipped to handle the setbacks and the failures.
-:These experiences become opportunities for growth rather than sources of despair, and this helps us to build our adaptability. Self compassion.
-:Setting some lower expectations encourages a bit of self compassion.
-:We often judge ourselves more harshly than we do others.
-:By adopting a kinder and more forgiving attitude towards ourselves, we can navigate the challenges with greater ease and comfort.
-:Self compassion really is the cornerstone of emotional well-being.
-:That voice in your head, hear it talk to you kindly.
-:Let's take a hot minute and consider that some of the kindness that we can show towards ourselves. Positive reinforcement.
-:Kindness plays a crucial role in setting lowered expectations.
-:Instead of berating ourselves for not reaching perfection, we can acknowledge our efforts and our progress.
-:Positive reinforcement and some self encouragement is vital for achieving the personal growth and success we want for ourselves. Realistic self appraisal.
-:A kind and realistic self appraisal is essential when we're striving for more.
-:When we acknowledge our strengths and limitations without harsh criticism, we set the stage for what might just be achievable.
-:By adopting a compassionate perspective, we can establish expectations that actually are in harmony with our capabilities. We should respect our boundaries.
-:Kindness also extends to respecting this for ourselves, our physical and emotional boundaries.
-:Pushing ourselves to the brink is not a sustainable way to meet our own high expectations.
-:Instead, we can set expectations that are aligned with our well-being, allowing us to achieve success without sacrificing our health.
-:So, for practical strategies, I suggest consider your your goals carefully.
-:Do you really want that goal you've set out to achieve? Maybe you don't. Prioritisation.
-:Now, this is an important one when setting out to achieve the goals that you really want.
-:What do you actually need to do to make it happen? And learning from setbacks.
-:Make sure when things don't go quite according to plan you take the learning from it.
-:In a world where high expectations are often held in high regard, I urge us all to value finding some joy in lowered expectations.
-:We can find a place of harmony between achievement and our well-being.
-:In the end the art of setting lowered expectations is a gentle reminder that success can coexist with kindness to ourselves. Ourselves. Thank you for listening in today. Come back again next week.
-:I'd love it if you could check out the show notes on this or any other podcast episode.
-:You'll see the link to a hidden episode to help you with your 5 PM cravings and you'll be able to read all about my one to 1 coaching programmes. PS. I believe in you.
