Work, Life, Growth

I am the type of person who likes to make to-do lists for everything. I have a to-do list for the tasks that I need to get completed around the house and for work related tasks. I love schedules and thrive off of a well-planned day. The problem comes when my to-do list is overflowing because I have given myself 42 hours’ worth of tasks to complete in a 24-hour period. Do you see the problem?

In a society that champions ambition and success, it’s easy to fall into the trap of setting unreasonable expectations for yourself professionally. While having high aspirations can be motivating, it’s important to strike a balance between aiming for the stars and maintaining a healthy dose of realism. In this blog post, I delve into the potential pitfalls of setting unreasonable expectations in your professional life and why it’s crucial to approach your goals with a practical mindset. Hopefully after this, you will be more aware of how to-do lists, when not approached properly, can lead to detrimental effects on growth.

1. The Burnout Battle:

When you’re consistently pushing yourself to achieve something that’s beyond your current capacity, you risk stretching yourself too thin. The pressure to meet these lofty expectations can cause chronic stress, anxiety, and eventually result in burnout, negatively impacting both your mental and physical well-being. Setting unattainable goals can often lead to the burnout phenomenon.

Settings goals is important because you want to have an idea of what direction you want to head, but you also want to give yourself enough time. For example, you may want to try to drive Atlanta to San Diego without stopping. This drive on average will take more than 30 hours. Is this a reasonable goal to try to accomplish without stopping to sleep and rest? If you are traveling alone, then the answer is no. However, if you set this goal and are traveling with several people who are able to drive as well, then this goal may be more reasonable. In order to accomplish the goal of driving to San Diego from Atlanta, you will have to plan effectively. If you are making the journey alone, plan for it to take you longer so that you will be able to rest and prepare for the next portion of the journey without operating in a state of fatigue. If you are making the journey with others, plan how long each person will drive prior to changing roles. Either way, the goal of making it to San Diego will be accomplished. One route will take longer, but the approach of stopping to rest is essential to avoid burnout.

This is the same when it comes to setting our goals and to do lists. Survey the number of tasks that need to be completed and see if it is a reasonable ask for one person to complete, how long it will take, and begin to make the arrangements. If help is needed to complete the tasks, survey the type of help needed and begin making plans. Don’t fall victim to the concept that more is better. Oftentimes, more is utterly exhausting, makes progression impossible, and leads to burnout. So, don’t burn yourself out and set reasonable expectations for yourself.

2. Undermining Your Confidence:

If I am not careful and overload myself when setting my to do lists and goals, I am doomed to fail at something. Whether the failure is completing the tasks in a reasonable amount of time, or even just falling flat on my face because I tried to conquer a marathon of a task when I was not prepared. Regardless of the reason for failure, repeatedly failing to meet unattainable goals can erode self-confidence.

I have learned that constant disappointment can lead one to doubt their abilities and question worthiness, which can hinder your overall professional growth. Instead of fostering a healthy self-esteem, you might find yourself trapped in a cycle of self-doubt. And then, further perpetuating this cycle of self-doubt simply because you continue to pile on too many tasks.

This cycle reminds me of the psychology principles of the “self-fulling prophecy”. This concept suggests that predictions or thoughts about oneself cause us to perform in a certain manner and ultimately cause these predications to become true. So how does this work? You experience failure after not setting an appropriate goal, time frame, or to-do list and then you fail. You then carry that into future experiences and believe that you will fail as a result of reduced confidence. You continue your trend of setting unreasonable tasks, and then fail as a result of your behaviors. After this failure, you remind yourself that you aren’t meeting your goals because you are a failure. When in fact, you are not a failure. Instead, you are setting yourself up for failure. There is a big difference, but unfortunately our confidence does not often separate the two.

3. Quality vs. Quantity:

In such a fast-paced society where we are encouraged to keep up, I often seen that quality suffers. We are so concerned about how much and more, that we often focus on the concept that more is better. In some cases, more is better, but when it comes to professional growth, we must understand that quality takes time to develop.

Unreasonable expectations might lead you to prioritize quantity over quality. The rush to meet unattainable targets can compromise the excellence of your work, and this can potentially tarnish your professional reputation. Striving for attainable goals ensures that you maintain the high standards required for success.

This is a great time to remind you that it is okay to tell people “no”. If you do not have the capability to effectively and complete a task to your best standards, you should be honest and indicate that it is not within your current bandwidth and decline. Knowing your limitations is an important key to maintaining your quality standards.

As a wife, mother of three, business owner, physical therapist, homeschooling parent, and more, I completely understand the desire to succeed in every area. Because my plate is full, I have also learned to set reasonable expectations for myself. Otherwise, every aspect of my life suffers and that is not fair to those whom I seek to serve. So, I’ll leave you with this last thought…

While it’s essential to dream big and set ambitious goals, it’s equally important to ground your aspirations in reality. Striving for realistic expectations allows you to grow, learn, and adapt along the way, fostering a healthier and more sustainable professional journey. Remember that success is not just about achieving the end result; it’s also about the growth, resilience, and relationships you build throughout the process. So, aim high, but do so with a clear understanding of your capabilities and a willingness to embrace the journey ahead, no matter where it leads you.