Hello there,
I’m here again ladies. As-sallam alaykum warahmatullah wabarakatuh. I am here because I’m trying to address some emotions that are making it difficult for me to be productive. So I chose to write, tick something else off my list.
Ramadan Mubaarak! How has it been for you so far? Have you adjusted your schedule accordingly? For those in school, how are you coping with fasting alone, especially if it’s your first time? Have you set your Ramadan goals or tasks? Do you have a dualist? Do you know you can exchange a dua list with your close friends? I did that with some friends and I love how I feel when I remember them in my prayers.
It’s being a busy week as usual with some impromptu changes to my lifestyle and schedule. Alhamdulilah, I’m grateful for these changes. One common theme that I had to face was dealing with emotions. I told you here that I don’t do great with dealing with difficult emotions. The fact that it messes up with my productivity is one major reason why I’m seeking help with it. I don’t know if it’s something you struggle with too. I need to grow a lot this year, bi iznillah, so I need to get to work.
I like to believe I am self-aware. I can name my emotions easily but it’s one thing to name these emotions, it’s another thing to work through them. Last week, imposter syndrome trended on Twitter. A lot of people can relate to this emotion. It’s everywhere, especially among highly skilled women. According to this study, 75% of executive women identified having experienced imposter syndrome at various points during their careers. This is the first step we take to deal with feeling like an imposter, identifying the feeling. To take it a step further, we will need to assess why we feel like an imposter, and this is where most people diagnose themselves as full-blown imposters. When working through these difficult feelings, it is important that we look through the right lens. Do you feel like an imposter because you are truly one or because you were made to feel like one? This is why it is important to be self-aware, to know yourself in and out. Do you struggle with public speaking or do you stumble over your words because a colleague is making weird faces at you in the background?
Photo by kilarov zaneit on Unsplash
You need to be self-aware because it helps you identify your faults, acknowledge them and then work on them. You need to be self-aware to know when someone makes you feel less of yourself. Get in the habit of checking in with yourself to know how you feel. You don’t have to make decisions based on these feelings because feelings are not facts. But you need to trust that gut feeling, it’s there for a reason.
May Allah guide us to the right path and help us make better decisions. Ameen.
With love,
Umaynah