Have you ever experienced a situation where you procrastinated, but for a good reason? I know. I know. We rarely, if ever, procrastinate for a good reason. But I promise I had a good reason. My good reason was that I had misplaced a digital document that would make revising efficient: the feedback on the print copy was not easy to read. The words were either cut off in the printing or I had no idea what part of what I wrote the feedback was addressing. That was a good reason, right? But what happens when you finally find the digital document (in the last place you thought to look, of course) and now you have no excuses to procrastinate?

Now what?

Now, you have to stop procrastinating and get to work.

This is my current dilemma. This is when the fear sets in and the imposter syndrome rears its ugly head. Because it is a “thing” that has a head and it’s ugly. So, I will try to acknowledge the imposter monster and let it go. Put him, yes it’s a him, in my mind’s balloon and let it go so that I can focus on making progress. Getting things done.

Yet, the worry that I am an imposter and that pretty soon everyone will discover the truth persists. And, when they do, they will know that I know nothing about teaching and learning, reading and writing. Everyone will point at me behind my back and whisper as I walk by: “She is an imposter”. Once that happens, I will have nowhere to hide. Right now, I can hide behind my inaction, more commonly known as procrastinating. As long as I do nothing, no one will know what I know: I’m an imposter.

But here’s the thing…if I keep repeating that mantra, it will become my reality. In fact, it already has. That’s why affirmations are so important. They are like aspirations. The places I want to go and that I have yet to get to. Repeating affirmations will shift my mindset and set me on a path of healing.

I write down three affirmations every day, but that’s not enough. The trick is to keep repeating them to yourself several times a day.

I usually write my own affirmations based on what’s currently happening in my life. At other times, I borrow them from other places. Here are the three that I wrote down for today:

• I forgive myself for not being perfect because I know that I’m human.
• I accept what I cannot change.
• I make the best of every situation.

Do you practice affirmations? If you do, and you’re so inclined, I hope you will share one in the comments section.

Crossposted to The Two Teachers of Writing Tuesday Slice of Life Challenge.