Beware of ‘I Should’

How many times a day do you hear yourself thinking or saying I should?

I should go to the gym, I should spend more time with the kids, I should clean the house.

I should be happier, smarter, thinner – you name it.

I did this right before I starting typing this post. I looked at my weekly planner and thought I should have gotten more done this week.

Constantly saying I should rarely leaves us feeling motivated. It’s often filled with negative emotions. It can bring on feelings of inadequacy, guilt, overwhelm and obligation.

It’s a two-word torture device.

It’s time for all the should-ing to stop.

Focus on today. Focus on right this minute.

What are your top priorities today?

Out of those priorities, what can wait till tomorrow? If you are anything like me, your initial list was probably a bit ambitious. When you start off with an unrealistic to-do list, you are setting yourself up to fail. By all means, challenge yourself to do as much as you can and constantly work at improving your productivity.

Push yourself to do your best but go in with a realistic approach as to how longs things take to complete.

Now change your wording to I will.

I will complete my top priority tasks.

I will focus on those tasks and perform them well. I will not be distracted by constantly thinking about what I should be doing instead.

I will be happy with what I achieve today.

I will be proud of myself.

I will.

I will is better when it’s followed by I have, as in I have completed my task and I feel great about it!

Replace I should with a focused, goal-driven I will mindset. 

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