Saturday went pretty well. Things were accomplished. You’ve heard me talk enough about that, so let’s talk about college.
I don’t have any idea what class it was (adolescent psychology?), but I remember that we learned about being self-actualized – knowing yourself. Wait! It was Adolescent Psych! It was Russ Mould’s class! Kris and Lloyd were in that with me, right? Brad, you too? (I should have taken a Retain Your Memeories class. That would have been useful.) Maslow’s heirarchy of needs? Man, I hope that’s right because I haven’t even googled it to see if I’m right and it just flowed from my fingers. Hello, memories! (Google Check: Nailed it!)
Anyway, we would walk around campus joking about how very self-actualized we were, but all joking aside, some of it stuck. In a nutshell, if all your basic needs are met, you can focus on less urgent needs. When those are met, you can get to the True You. Blah blah blah. The thing that I took away from it is trying to be aware of my flaws.
This is so funny, because while trying to be aware of flaws, I am sure that there are some that I’m blind to that are pretty glaring to other people. I’m fine with that. I’m also not trolling for compliments, so let’s not go down that road. It’s just helpful to recognize in myself the things that are trip-ups. (Remember the ‘lowering standards to have more joy’ thing? This is part of that conversation.)
Some personality….. (let’s not call them ‘flaws’ but rather ‘quirks’ so it’s not comparing people to an ideal) quirks I have that I’m comfortable owning:
* worrywart
* controlling/bossy (mostly to Lloyd)
* gutless (I don’t say what I often think)
* easily irritated (but I mask it well)
* flighty
* selfish/thoughtless
* forgetful
* bad driver
*
Ok, that’s enough of a start. There are more but I’m tired. I guess I don’t really know where I’m going with this post. It’s part of the ‘thoughts swirling in my head’ thing, so thank you for bearing with it.
How about you? Any quirks?
Brad says
I sometimes don’t know when to stop working because I care too much about doing a good job.
Wait… This isn’t a job application?
Lauren says
Ha! Excellent!
As I drifted off to sleep I realized that this sounds negative and whining, and I really, really want to say that this is not the case!! It’s just something I think about often.
Not whining. Not sad. Everything is fine.
Brad says
It was just that your last question made me think of the job applications I had been filling out in the summer. I really never know what to say when they ask what my biggest flaw is. Do they really expect people to be honest with that question? Will telling them I have a Reddit addiction make me a better candidate somehow? Or that laziness always wins? I sometimes wonder if that question on a job application has some hidden purpose.
Gretchen says
I am chronically overcommitted. I hate to talk on the phone and avoid making phone calls like the plague. I also tend to be more task-oriented than people-oriented (so I’ll be happy to make you dinner, but if you want me to stay and spend quality time with you well, that’s pushing it.)
I always wanted to be self-actualized also…but how do I know if I’ve gotten there?
Peggy says
A few of my quirks: I enjoy being “done”, so I often miss the joy in tasks & challenges; I hold things in & then EXPLODE over something that seems insignificant; I still expect fairness in this world; I have no patience with technical things -- NONE; according to people I work with, I’m hard to offend so I apparently don’t stick up for myself enough; I don’t like to wear pants; i can be really lazy at home; I haven’t made peace with my quirks .
Lauren says
Awesome. 🙂 I would say that is very self-actualized of you both!