Three Things I Suck At
Posted on July 18th, 2008 in Personal Development
I love simplicity. Pretty obvious, right? Me and simplicity are sitting in a tree k-i-s-s-i-n-g. But am I always successful at keeping things simple? Not so much.
Life always comes down to balance, so if want to be good at one thing, I’m probably going to have suck at something else. So, in honor of the idea that imperfection can be inspiring I’m sharing three things I suck at:
- Going to bed on time. Can’t do it. Never have. There’s always something more interesting to be done!
- Completing projects. I have half completed hook rugs from fifth grade, random walls left unpainted, and a closet full of decluttered stuff I still haven’t moved out of the house. I’m a pretty decent starter, but not a fabulous finisher.
- Eating healthy. What can I say? I love cookies like I love my own sister. I would marry both Ben and Jerry if polygamy were allowed. At one point, I’m pretty sure I actually sold my soul for a Ring Ding. I make a valiant effort from time to time, but I’m just not there yet.
What about you? None of us are perfect, and it feels pretty good to admit it. So leap into the comments and share something you suck at! Unless you suck at commenting, in which case, just have a great weekend!
Tags: Personal Development
This post has 45 comments
July 18th, 2008
If what I’ve read recently on other blogs (e.g. momgrind) happens, Sara, then you might be getting some pretty dodgy google traffic for this post!
Well, for every one thing you’re not good at- I imagine there’s loads more you are brilliant at.
For myself, I’m not very good at not trying to experiment.
New ways of doing stuff, new ways of thinking, new gadgets, whatever.
Sometimes, it’s best just to stick with the familiar ways as every so often you get your fingers burnt.
What is it they say about curiousity and the cat?!
July 18th, 2008
I’m not so good at creating a realistic schedule. Don’t get me wrong. I’m GREAT at scheduling. My GoogleCal looks beautiful at the end of a scheduling session.
It’s just that I get into real life and realize that the baby’s nap on Tuesday is not long enough to work out, shower, scrapbook, and do the dishes, laundry and vacuuming. lol
I need to schedule fewer things and let some things go undone until I get the hang of how much time things take.
July 18th, 2008
Awesome post! What a great way to get people involved. Although, to echo Scott’s comments, I’ve found hits to my blog were almost triple what they usually are when the word “suck” was in the title. Oddly enough, my spam comments increased as well. Hmm, do you think that might be related?
Anyway, here is my things-I-suck-at-list:
1. Blogging - I couldn’t update on a regular basis to save my life. When I do write, I devote about an hour or two of time when I’m inspired and press the “Publish” button. I (try to) proofread and all that, but I don’t spend enough time on research and planning out my posts. Of course, this lack of planning is probably the main reason that I couldn’t update on a regular basis to save my life.
2. Talking - I have become so used to writing, whether it be emails, IMs, blog posts, comments, letters, notes, etc. that allow me to organize my thoughts and make sure what I said was clear that most of my voice conversations are filled with “uhh”s and “umm”s. But that could also be the fact that I’ve been living in a small town for too many years.
3. Over-analyzing - I re-wrote #3 twelve times. At first I said communicating, then I said talking to my offline friends, then many others. I am absolutely terrible at second guessing myself, and I tend to think too much about what I’m saying and how it will be received.
So, yay! I suck too!
July 18th, 2008
I suck at public speaking.
Other than that, I’m perfect.
Well actually the list of things I suck at is incredibly long, but let’s just leave it at that for now.
July 18th, 2008
I’m always working on ways to improve myself…here are my top three:
1. Thankfulness: Being thankful for where I am in life, not where I am not.
2. Intention: Always having the best of intentions in mind moving forward.
3. Earthfulness: A made up term. Thinking of the environment with every action, with every purchase, with every thought.
July 18th, 2008
Hi Sara - great post idea. I was laughing out loud when I read the part about healthy eating.
I suck at so many things but I’ll try to pick 3 off the top of my head:
1) Doing those big scary tasks on my to do list. I know they need to be done and I know that not getting them done will cause real problems - but I still try to avoid them.
2) Being organised - I could make an empty room look untidy in seconds.
3) Training staff - I get to engrossed in what I’m doing and forget they’re there.
July 18th, 2008
1. Getting hooked up to my feed pump in the evening. I always end up leaving it until late and then regretting it the next day when I’m tied to the darned thing for too long.
2. Remembering appointments. I’m trying to be more organised by writing everything in my diary but the trouble is, I forget to look in it.
3. Putting the can away before I’ve finished all of the Pringles.
Plus a few zillion other things
July 18th, 2008
“Going to bed on time. Can’t do it. Never have. There’s always something more interesting to be done!”
The truth of this can not be overstated. And, that is precisely why - those who can go to bed early are nothing short of being warriors.
Up until this point, I have often fallen short in this area. But today is a new day!
July 18th, 2008
Going to bed on time. For about two years I was excellent at going to bead at 10:30 and getting up at 6:30. Then I went back to college and kissed that schedule goodbye.
Now that I have a kid I’m much better about getting up in the mornings, but not so good at going to bed at night - too many distractions!
Great post!
July 18th, 2008
There are lots of things I suck at - here’s three that I’d like to improve on:
1. Saying ‘no.’ I’m on four local boards and one national one - and countless committees. Enough is enough. At a certain point quality suffers.
2. Slowing down. I talk (and think and type) a hundred miles an hour - and what comes out doesn’t always make sense. Improvement on this has been in my personal development plan for years.
3. Keeping a clean house. We live in perpetual filth (dog hair!) and will continue to do so until we are debt-free at which point we will outsource this task.
July 18th, 2008
LOL..k-i-s-s-i-n-g..that brings back childhood memories! I love that hand game. Do kids still play those?
Well, that would be the first thing I suck at..which is sticking to the point *grin*
2. sticking to a housecleaning schedule. I try. I really realy do!
3. dragging my sorry butt out of bed when the alarm goes off. Just 5 more minutes, um 10 more, no 20 more…
July 18th, 2008
Exercising tops the list. Sometimes I get regular for 4-6 months and then totally let go.
July 18th, 2008
I suck! Well, in certain areas anyway.
1. Avoiding chocolate - can’t do it. I’m drawn to it whenever it’s around.
2. Copying Urban Panther’s #3 - getting up with the alarm clock. It’s anywhere between 5 minutes to 1 hour after it goes off before I roll out.
3. Completing tasks that are important but not urgent. There is so much I could be doing that would be good for me, but I put it off because I don’t have to do it.
I could go on…
July 18th, 2008
Ok, wow, do I ever relate to the going to bed on time! I am so terrible at that, it’s not even funny!
Very funny post!
July 18th, 2008
Going to bed on time tops my list. I get so worn out all day but I have to have my time to myself after the kids are in bed and so often stay up too late.
I also suck at managing my time well. I thrive on doing things at the last minute and I know I work better under pressure so I often put things off and waste time until I absolutely need to get stuff done.
I am also a pretty crappy singer. My daughter plugs her ears and says “stop singing! it’s not a song for you to sing!” My son is still young enough to just smile and dance anyway
July 18th, 2008
Thanks to everyone for embracing the idea of imperfection. I don’t know about you, but it’s a nice way to start the weekend, and I’ve loved every single one of the comments!
@Scott: Eeek! I didn’t think about the consequences of my verb usage. We’ll see how it plays out…
@Sarah: It’s so easy to want to squeeze results out of every minute, isn’t it? Although I’m sure you get quite a bit accomplished with your calendaring habit, even if some items don’t get checked off.
@Russ: Your #3 cracked me up! And I’m going to be on the lookout for inappropriate spam. We can start a club!
@Vered: I love your attitude! I imagine all your flaws as being adorable things like, “I spoil the pets too much” or, “I smile in my sleep.”
@Squawkfox: I’m all for word coinage! I can get behind “earthfulness.”
@Cath: So glad I could give you a laugh–and ditto on the big scary things.
@Sharon: Pringles rule! I can totally sympathize.
@Bamboo Forest: Warriors is an understatement! But I’m glad I’m not the only one.
@LivSimpl: Yeah, I would imagine that having a child would make so many things either 100 percent easier and others 100 percent harder.
@Heidi: Yikes–I never considered dog hair “filth.” I so have to vacuum this weekend…
@Urban Panther: You suck at not being funny. I love your sense of humor.
@Avani-Mehta: Ooh–that’s another one for me to. Maintaining momentum when something comes up can be so hard!
@Lance: Chocolate! Are you related to my husband?
@Amy: Thanks for the compliment!
@Emily: I secretly love singing poorly. I think it’s adorable that you sing with your little ones (despite the protests).
July 18th, 2008
Oh my! My three are pretty much your three. I have a stuffed animal from Home Economics class in the seventh grade that I still haven’t finished. And, I have an art project from high school I still haven’t finished. But, I intend to one day…
July 19th, 2008
I suck at:
1. Being tidy.
2. Being mindful.
3. Saying No to my kids when they try to distract me with a beautiful smile while making their requests!
July 19th, 2008
I suck at:
1. Not believing in my uniqueness- any idea that I have had I always think that someone else has done it. This stops me from doing a lot of things.
2. Getting out of bed- I love to sleep so during the week its torture for me.
3. Making up my mind- I will go over something in and out and still decide to not do it.
Enjoy your weekend!
July 19th, 2008
I suck at …
1. Giving myself credit for a job well done even when people are praising me.
2. Making my bed in the morning…I did it for years at home, but now that I live on my own…it never seems to get done!
3. Being upfront and honest with people who I do not want to be around.
July 19th, 2008
I’ve got so many to choose from, I don’t know where to start! Let see… I suck at:
1. putting my clothes away - my bedroom has more clothes on the chairs, night table, and floor than in the closet and dressers.
2. cutting down on my sugar intake - I love cake, cookies, chocolate bars, jello, etc, etc. I’m on a one day on, one day off sugar schedule in an attempt to get it under control. Quitting cold turkey just ain’t going to happen. (I’ve tried.)
3. returning my library books on time. - I’m sure the amount of fines I pay on overdue books covers someone’s salary for a year…
and the list goes on…
Thanks for the fun post!
July 19th, 2008
I suck at getting out of bed in the morning.
I am terrible at it. If only a perfectly made cup of coffee was waiting on the nightstand every morning for me, and the smell of bacon and eggs frying and biscuits baking in the oven, then maybe I could get up on time. (smile)
July 19th, 2008
I would have to say regular flossing and losing weight while on a regular exercise routine.
I can floss alright but I’m doing real good if I can floss twice in one week. It’s like brushing isn’t enough so I got to floss also? Then I go to the dentist for my six month cleaning/checkup so I can get interrogated about my flossing habits. I’m guilty as hell but hey that’s why I’m here and I’m paying you right?
I’m currently on a regular exercise program but my weight has pretty much stabilized. The reason is I really get hungry after a long bike ride so I reward myself afterwards and between rides. Of course I deserve it but I’ll never lose the weight I need to really make a difference in my times up those hills. It does suck!
July 19th, 2008
“I imagine all your flaws as being adorable things like, “I spoil the pets too much” or, “I smile in my sleep.”
You really, REALLY like me!
Oh, and Scott is right… should be interesting.
July 19th, 2008
I really appreciate your ability to force me to make lists. Whether it’s three things I’ve given up or three thinks I suck at, it’s nice to actually sit down and think about it for a minute or two. I guess that actually brings me to the first thing I suck at:
1) Making lists - I spend a lot of time thinking about lists or ordering things in my head, but I never make that jump to actually putting them down on paper (or on the computer).
2) Following my own advice - A lot of my friends turn to me for help in both personal and professional situations. I’ve been told I give great advice at those times, but I always end up forgetting what it was and needing someone else to remind me later.
3) Turning my computer off - I spend WAY too much time in front of this tiny screen. I really need to work on just walking away from time to time and either getting things done in the house or actually enjoying the weather outside!
I’m sure I can keep the list going for a while, but this is a start. Maybe I’ll write them down in a notebook and keep up with my list (#1) somewhere away from the electronics (#3).
July 20th, 2008
I am with you on getting to bed on time. I’ll plan to go to bed at a certain time, and all of a sudden I will look at my clock, and it is 30 minutes past that and I haven’t even thought about bed since I made the plan.
Here’s a tip about eating healthy. Don’t buy sweets at the store, and when you are tempted to eat some, they won’t be available.
July 20th, 2008
great post! really interesting reading everyone’s replys.
1.spending only 5 mins on the computer… always ends up here for tooooo long
2.concentraing on 1 task at a time… always multi tasking
3.sitting still- too much of a fidget
oh by the way i’ve given you an award- details on my blog
July 20th, 2008
@dcr: Finishing a high school art project would be pretty cool! It would be a very realistic representation of how you’ve grown since then.
@Evelyn: Your three made me smile. Kids are so good at knowing our weaknesses, aren’t they?
@Tiffany: “Not believing in my own uniqueness”–that’s a really interesting one. I bet that even if someone has thought of something before, you can still bring a new and interesting perspective to it.
@Katie: Ditto on making the bed. It’s way easier to just buy pretty sheets!
@Laurie: Oh, no! Those library fines can add up. I know some areas have drop-offs (and even pick-ups) next to grocery stores. I think that would help a lot of us.
@Christa: Bacon is the ultimate motivator, isn’t it? There’s isn’t a whole lot I wouldn’t do for bacon.
@Mark: I know! I hate the flossing interrogation. I feel like a naughty schoolchild, like I’ll get stuck cleaning out flouride trays after the appointment if I give the wrong answer.
@Vered: The spam count is already up over 100 percent of normal. Thank goodness for Akismet!
@Eric: As long as people enjoy participating in these posts, I’ll continue to force you to make lists. It’s the same with me, actually. I come up with an idea I think will be fun, and then when I sit down to write my own list, I really have to stop and think. It’s a nice, brief meditation for me.
@Tage: Your tip is well taken. I’m having problems with sweets in the office and in the form of gifts. It seems everyone else knows my weak spot, too!
@Donna: Thanks so much for the award and for including me in your blogroll!
July 20th, 2008
well your three are my three, but i’m sure i have more. i’ve been meaning to read a book on procrastination and haven’t gotten around to it. i suck at doing all i need to do when i need to do it.
July 20th, 2008
My three.
1. Looking after myself properly: losing weight, exercising, remembering I’m a worthy cause, too!
2. Being kind: it’s my ambition in life to be kind, but I am a real bitch sometimes and then don’t like what I said or myself, much.
3. Toleration of others (especially fools): I loathe incompetence, and yet have studiously avoided it myself by doing only those things that come easily or naturally.
All three arise from the area of self-control. I’m a strong person - have lived through some hard times and overcome some difficult habits/circumstances - but my lifetime struggle arises when trying to be self-disciplined, kind and tolerant.
July 20th, 2008
@Natural: “I’ve been meaning to read a book on procrastination and haven’t gotten around to it.” That’s the best one sentence description of procrastination I’ve ever read!
@Nicola: I think there’s a lot of us who don’t look after ourselves well. (Myself included.) I can imagine that after living through hard times, it’s a challenge to make excuses for others who’ve been through less. I think it’s pretty awesome that you even acknowledge that these are things worth working on.
July 21st, 2008
Haha I suck at… Getting up early on weekends. I’m like you and sometimes stay up too late… But even when I do get to bed one time, on the weekend, I have a bad habit of sleeping in. Thinking about getting one of those alarms with natural light!
Fun post (=
July 21st, 2008
Hi Derek,
I’m totally intrigued by those alarms. If you get one, please let me know how it goes!
July 22nd, 2008
Things I really suck at:
1) Pointless social interaction. I just can’t get the hang or the reason for most social interaction, other that it inflicts a person’s boredom on someone else. Being a diagnosed Asperger tends to amplify the problem.
2) Tolerating imcompetence in any form.
3) Working with Linux for free.
July 22nd, 2008
@jrandom42: Ironically, I bet your Asperger’s makes some people more interested in your life and more likely to strike up some social interaction. Has that been true at all for you?
July 22nd, 2008
As ridiculous as this sounds… Every night when I go to bed I have a bowl of cereal… I always tell myself to give it up… but then night comes around and there I am having a bowl of cereal :)~
I also suck at consistently watering my plants…
These things seem simple but they drive me nuts….
July 22nd, 2008
Hi Shelly,
I’ve got to admit, that does sound kind of funny, but there are way worse late night indulgences you could be craving! In fact, now that I’ve got cereal on my mind…
July 23rd, 2008
Sara,
Not really. Mostly I live in the hole in the wall that is my CIO office. I deal with the board (who are mostly engineers and task and product focused), and the IT staff who are a smattering of Asperger’s as well. After living through the rollercoaster of the dot com boom and bust, I and most of my staff have learned to keep a firewall between our professional and personal lives. A number of us have interesting hobbies, but it’s not normally shared on a deep level, more like “How’d your weekend go at the forge?” type thing.
July 25th, 2008
HA, my three are very similar.
I can not go to sleep like a normal person. I could be doing something! Somewhere! Um… at 3:00 AM…. I’m sure of it…
I fail at lunch… er…well… eating. I forget. It’s hard to explain, I love food, I love cooking, I love eating… but I forget. I sometimes remember around 3 or 4 in the afternoon. Then I think well… I can just eat dinner in a while. Sometimes that happens, sometimes… I forget.
hmm… third thing.
Giving myself credit…
July 26th, 2008
So many to choose from…
1-Keeping up with people.
2-Willpower.
3-Reading/following directions.
July 26th, 2008
Jrandom42: I imagine it’s kind of freeing to have everyone on the same page in terms of separating personal lives from your work. But I have a terrible track record of predicting what works for you, so maybe not.
Hyrcan: You fail at lunch. That’s one of the funniest confessions yet! And if you suck at giving yourself credit, check out this week’s question, where I force you to try!
FloridaChic: I’m awful at keeping up with people as well. But I bet you have some fun by not following directions!
July 28th, 2008
I know I’m late here to comment, but I can’t post over at the “3 Things I’m Good At” until I comment here.
1) Remembering to do one thing at a time.
2) Cooking
3) Managing my online time
July 28th, 2008
I saw this blog and I just knew I had to post if I expect to improve my character. So, here are the 3 things I absolutely suck at:
1. The ability to tolerate any tomfoolery of any sort (such as ignorance, rudeness, drama, inconsistency, disloyalty, etc). I must change this - patience is a virtue and I suck at this.
2. Cleaning up my space - I love how I feel after I’ve cleaned my room, but I have to learn how to translate the resulting satisfaction into the motivation needed to make me actually clean my room.
3. Planning - I’m not good at planning. I always think I have more time to do something than I actually do. I guess this falls under time management, which I kinda suck at unless it’s something that is really really important.
July 28th, 2008
Marshall: I waste an inordinate amount of time online as well. I just installed RescueTime–we’ll see if it does anything to help me help myself.
Shanae: These are all great areas to improve in, but keep in mind too that you don’t have to be perfect. Sometimes our imperfections lead us to things we never would’ve learned or discovered otherwise.
August 23rd, 2008
Greetings!
Can I just start by saying that I thoroughly enjoy your site??
;]! As I am an aspiring in the field of HR, these posts are of utmost value to my developing career and humor (as they are so commonsensically true, but not always realized) ;].
I wanted to make a quick tease on what you said about Ben & Jerry! I heard that they were interested in men ! Ironic, eh? That will save us women much of the temptation!! Haha ;]!!!
Best,
Sami
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