#doing your best

[thepeacefulgarden]

[gracious-midnight]

The saying "do your best every day" doesn't mean that you have to accomplish fantastic feats every day

Sometimes your best is simply just waking up and walking to the coffee machine, and thats okay

Today, my best was getting a 75 on an American Literature test, and thats okay. You can always try again tomorrow.

[serenityquest]

[chroniclesofchronicillness]

Hard to do sometimes

[authenticity2025]

You are doing your best, and that is all anyone can ask of you, including yourself. You are doing enough, even when it doesn't feel like you are. Some days are just about making it to the next one, and that counts, too. Give yourself permission to rest, without guilt or shame. And remember, rest is part of the process, not a reward for success. Honor your progress, and celebrate your little wins, not just the big ones. Give yourself credit where it's due. Resting is not the same as quitting. Your best might not look like someone else's best, or even like your best did yesterday (or even just five minutes ago), and that's okay. Sometimes, you'll have to reimagine what "success" means, and that's okay.

[b0bthebuilder35]

[momoartworks]

The thing about gifted kid syndrome I feel doesn't get talked about enough is how it affects your idea of "doing your best".

When you can't stick to deadlines or get expectation paralysis when faced with a task, people will call it perfectionism and say stuff like "done is better than perfect" and that just bounces right off my brain because I don't want it perfect, I want to do my best, and if it feels like i have the ability to do it better, then I can't finish it yet.

And I think it's unfair that we grow with these positive messages of "always do your best!" and "never give up!" when there are objectively situations where you have to settle for less than your best or cut your losses.

I'm not a professional by any means, so in just speaking from my experience, this cognitive dissonance might be caused by the combination of several of my mental difficulties (anxiety, neurodivergence, trauma, etc), but maybe some of you will understand what I'm saying.