Embracing Mediocrity vs. Striving for Excellence (Part 6: 7 types of Inner Critic)
Hello Friendly Readers,
This week we are talking about the taskmaster and let me tell you this one has been running my week! And I didn’t even realize it until I read about what the taskmaster does.
Taskmaster says:
Do more!
There’s no time to rest
You have so much work you need to be doing ALL the time
You’re sooooo lazy
You’re a failure (insert all the reasons why you are a failure)
The taskmaster believes that if it doesn’t stop pushing, you will give up and be mediocre, ordinary, common, and average. Personally I don’t see anything wrong with being ordinary or average. I don’t need to stand out, and yet being inferior, uninspired, unremarkable, forgettable, none of those are things I’d like to be either. I don’t consider myself someone who needs to stand out in a crowd, if anything I like to blend in. And yet, my taskmaster has convinced me that I need to get noticed, to be exceptional, excellent, and extraordinary. It says by no means can I settle into a mediocre and lazy existence, that would be the worst thing.
What I find fascinating is I can fight against this inner critic for my entire existence and all for what? Let’s say I somehow am deemed exceptional and extraordinary by the world, what does that mean? The world could say that and just as quickly decide I’m an average nobody. I’m not looking for this external validation so how does the taskmaster hold so much power inside of me.
A lot of the power is in the fight. The fight to get it to stop ordering me around, the fight to defend myself for everything I do, the fight to prove to myself that I am not lazy or a failure and I do deserve to rest. This fight takes up so much mental and emotional space. What if, instead of fighting I accept the worst possible outcome:
I am lazy.
I am an average common human.
I am a failure at many things, because I have tried many things.
When I lean into acceptance it takes away the back and forth, the struggle, the battle, and what’s left is my humanity and my spirit.
My human self will remain average and common. I will continue to fail. I will be lazy sometimes. Accepting these qualities shrinks the hold my inner critic has over me. It tames the inner critic to let it be heard and to know that it is not the full truth.
Because I can say, “I see you taskmaster, I hear you, your fears are valid, there is a place for you inside of me, (because how can their not be, you’re already in here) you are welcome, and you are not the only one here. There are hard workers here too and they are extraordinary because they continue to persevere and create against all odds and with no recognition. You don’t have to order them around to get shit done, in fact you’re slowing them down by being such a tyrant.
If you can relate to this I suggest asking your inner taskmaster what it needs?
Mine needs to know I will commit a minimum of 2 hours each week to the tasks that matter to all of us at the table. Not just the cleaning, feeding, housekeeping, and keeping the kids alive. It needs to know I will carve time for my creative projects and for my physical wellbeing too.
I’d love to hear what your taskmaster needs in the comments.
Love Always,
Danielle Mallett
