The Motivated Mind

Recently read The Motivated Mind by Dr Raj Persaud, which I must admit was not what I expected from the title. The book ends with a discussion on suicide so I was a bit confused as to what the Dr wanted to say! However he did have something to say which I felt was aimed at me. He said that Perfectionists are plagued by self doubt (they dwell on their failures) which is counter productive. Because perfectionists urge themselves to the limits of endurance, they leave no spare capacity to cope with added stress from the environment. This leads to added strain and weariness. The terror of only middling accomplishment means that those who feel tired all the time perhaps avoid too much activity when trying to rest. Feeling tired all the time is a clue to having over pushed yourself for reasons to do with ambitions. Maniacal rushing is down to deep insecurities that will never be appeased by sheer effort, no matter how much is achieved. That sums me up to a tee at the moment!

So, (according to the good Dr.) I need to:
Stop looking for approval.
Don’t be afraid of failure. The fear of failure stops us succeeding.
Invest your energy in the right things. Prioritize!
Take a break!! Exercise!

Just because someone throws you a ball, doesn’t mean you have to catch it!