Am I doing more harm than good?
Thursday 1/23/20...
Ruh roh! I'm on the very last page of my journal as I write this morning's entry and I still haven't picked up a new one. I'll run out this weekend which means I won't post tomorrow, but it'll be a nice little break : )
Typically, when I start these each morning, I write a few things in the header that don't make it into the digital version because they just help me track my habits and emotions.
In fact, I have a whole mindset sheet on my daily tracker that I fill in each day before starting work.
It tracks things like what time I wake up and go to bed so I know how much sleep I'm getting and when I need more. When I start for the day, and when I close up shop so I know how many hours I'm putting in. But I also track how happy I am on a scale from 1-10.
I record this at the top of my journal, so it really only captures how I feel at the start of each day. Other metrics capture how well I think I performed out of 100% and similarly, how my attitude was out of 1-10 the day before.
Again, I complete this sheet right before getting started for the day so it's hard to get the complete picture.
So I've decided to temporarily stop tracking these three metrics: happiness, performance, and attitude. My fear is that by attempting to measure these, I'm actually setting myself up for failure.
Each of them is recorded within the first few hours of my day. If I declare that I'm not that happy or that yesterday's performance wasn't great, it can actually bring me down and I start my day on a bad note.
If that turns into a bad day, it impacts my performance and it starts to snowball day-to-day. I've never found this to be a crippling problem, but I definitely have noticed this exercise can make an impact. I wonder if I'm actually doing more harm than good?
I'd much rather focus on the positives only. Rating myself can go one of either way. But what if I asked myself what I was proud of yesterday instead?
Less tangible to measure but it's more focused on keeping me motivated. For now, I'll simply stop tracking these metrics and see how I feel. If I choose to fill that gap with another exercise in time, then so be it.
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This is an entry from my personal daily journal and a snapshot of what it's like building my company, SIX3MEDIA. I started publishing these entries to hone my writing skills, reflect on my progress, and share my experiences first-hand.
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Thanks for reading, see ya tomorrow : )
- Dan