I’m such a nerd/internet addict I can’t resist pressing a WP post using my in-flight internet!
I’ll also take the opportunity to remind everyone that it’s Confidence Week. Take a moment to think about how today you can avoid being passive or aggressive (or both), and instead take steps to be assertive.
Two years ago I started this blog with a post about Confidence Week, which falls during the week of Thanksgiving and reminds us to be confident in who we are and how we feel. I haven’t had a chance to wear anything super ostentatious this week, but it has been an interesting week in terms of apologies.
Being confident doesn’t necessarily correlate to apologizing less. Rather it’s about expressing regret and empathy for violating someone else’s comfort zone while simultaneously maintaining your own. This is tricky to due genuinely, but in the end I think it makes the apology more sincere.
So this week, I’m trying to focus on addressing my own needs and the needs of others (where appropriate) simultaneously.
Today is the anniversary of my first post at Halfawake, which reminds me that it’s currently Confidence Week. My loudest shirts are all lined up and I’m preparing to tell a bunch of people off (in a kind, well-adjusted way, of course). Should be fun.
I’ve been thinking about why I started this blog, and where it’s going. If I remember, the original motivation was to practice getting my thoughts out. I try to follow the life advice of my friend Bads – “strike while the iron is hot”. If I see something or think about something that’s important to me, I record it here, and that helps me file it away mentally rather than throwing it into my cerebral incinerator. I don’t necessarily expect to get feedback about my posts, but the feedback I have received, both on the blog and in private emails, has been excellent. In the end I guess I’m just trying to engage a different part of my brain… The part that doesn’t constantly think about algorithms for solving non-smooth systems of differential equations.
I’m glad that this hasn’t become another failed project left by the side of the road, and I hope to keep it going for another year.
A friend of mine suggested today that the week before Thanksgiving should henceforth be known as “Confidence Week”. As someone who is routinely told by others that I need to be more confident, this caught my attention right quick. He explained that the main tenants of Confidence Week are that individuals apologize less and wear more ostentatious clothing (cowboy shirts and anything with flowers would work for me, but your outrageous outfits may vary).
Confidence Week ends on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, and starts on the Monday six days prior. Since today is Saturday and Confidence Week ends tomorrow, I’m looking to do something mighty confident in the next 24 hours.
Thanks to Jason for the suggestion!
