Recent demerits and gold stars

May 16, 2023
about me/currently/daily life

photo credit: @markusspiske via Unsplash

I am currently lacking a bit of my blogging mojo (can you tell?)  and I am employing some help from friends in the form of stealing post ideas (this time again from my friend Elisabeth). You might be familiar with her regular posts of recent demerits and gold stars — so I am jumping on the bandwagon today in order to check in on what has – and what hasn’t – worked these first few months of the new year.

Demerits
  • Snoozing the alarm one too many times. I want to blame this on jetlag because I am technically going to bed early enough to get enough sleep, but when wake-up time comes around, I still want to keep snoozing for a little bit longer and it makes my morning routine a bit rushed. 
  • Not reading as much as I’d like to. I know that sounds like a self-imposed problem. Obviously, I am opting to do “other things”. I once again realize that I have too many competing hobbies. The struggle is real. 
  • Not doing enough strength training. I had a good routine at the beginning of the year and then I dropped the strength training a bit. I know it’s all a matter of organizing my workouts accordingly. I’ll be on it. 

Gold Stars

  • Standing up for myself at work. I mentioned it somewhere before, I can be a very patient, “going-with-the-flow”, “wait-and-see”-kinda person at work, and naturally, sometimes people take advantage of that. One of the things I want to do in 2023 is be more assertive and speak up when it’s warranted (not just when it feels inevitable). I am learning (slowly, but surely) that speaking up and saying ‘no’ occasionally will earn you some respect. (Who knew?) I have my performance review coming up in a couple of weeks and try to prepare myself to be more self-confident in that conversation.
  • Getting my outdoor bike tuned up. My bike had been sitting in the garage for the better part of the last year and subsequently, the tires had lost air. I called the local neighborhood bike shop last weekend and brought it in for a tune-up (check and fill tires, align tires, brake check, etc.) and now it’s ready to be used for leisure and to commute to the office once a week. I am so glad I got this done.
  • Staying on top of small, but important things on my non-project-related, administrative work to-do list. I try really hard to get administrative things done early (if at all possible), e.g. filing my bank card statements, filling out IT inventory forms, etc. I don’t like to have these things lingering on my to-do list, plus it also makes a good impression on my supervisor if he doesn’t have to nag me to complete these tasks.
  • Getting some routine check-ups scheduled and done earlier this year. I got my mammogram, colonoscopy, (follow-up from last year) endoscopy done in Q1 of 2023 and my next dentist cleaning is scheduled for later this month. I love being on top of these things (even if it’s hard sometimes to make these phone calls and set up the appointments. I know!).
  • Easing myself back into my workout routine. Coming back from an extended break is never easy, especially when it comes to your established workout routine. It’s nice and important to take a break sometimes, but it’s almost like breaking a habit that you then have to get into again. I am trying to be gentle and not do too much too soon (especially after Covid made a brief appearance again).

Share a recent demerit and gold star with me!

  1. Beckett @ Birchwood Pie

    May 16, 2023 at 3:25 pm

    Yay for standing up for yourself. That’s exactly what my therapist is working with me on, and that I’ll be putting into action soon. I never realized how much tougher some things in my life are because I was just accepting them and trying to be nice. Well, now that I know…

    1. San

      May 17, 2023 at 9:20 pm

      Way to go, Birchie. I am glad you’re working on that too! I am learning slowly that speaking up and setting boundaries is actually beneficial. Who knew!

  2. Kyria @ Travel Spot

    May 17, 2023 at 5:14 am

    Nice work getting your appointments booked! I always tell people that my personality goes like this: if it is on the calendar, I will get it done. If it is not on the calendar, weeks or months (or years?) can go by without anything happening. I HAVE TO have it scheduled. Once I do, it is a given and a goal and a task and so I will do it. I always schedule my next dentist appointment at the dentist as I am leaving. I know this does not work quite as well with the mammogram etc. but I do like knowing that those regular check ups are just that, regular, rather than having to remember NEXT November that I need to schedule a yearly exam. So kudos to you!

    I would say a demerit for me was skipping a workout yesterday. I had time, it was a nice day, but I just decided to work on an indoor project which needed to get done by next week. So I guess my gold star is finally working on that indoor project!!!

    1. San

      May 17, 2023 at 9:21 pm

      Oh, I can relate to this so much. When it’s on my to-do list/calendar, I will do it. If I don’t put it down, I will think about it and postpone, postpone, postpone. Funny how are brains work, right?

  3. Jenny

    May 17, 2023 at 10:51 am

    Ooh, I love demerits and gold stars! The good thing about demerits is, once you air them publicly, you’re extra motivated to take action. I would say my biggest recent demerit is letting my house slip into a state of disrepair, which became wildly obvious when we realized we would be having a houseguest. Ack! The last few days have been spent frantically scrubbing, vacuuming, dusting and decluttering. I guess you could call the cleaning spree a gold star, but there’s still so much to be done! Sigh.
    Good luck on your upcoming performance review!

    1. San

      May 17, 2023 at 9:22 pm

      Yes, that is so true… once you talk about your demerits publicly, you’re extra motivated to take action. Good for you for getting youru house cleaned! Houseguests are always a good motivator ;)

  4. Rachel Palmer

    May 18, 2023 at 9:39 pm

    Your gold stars are big ones! Yay for standing up for yourself at work! And getting a bike tuned up! All your gold stars are excellent accomplishments.

    1. San

      May 18, 2023 at 10:38 pm

      Thank you, Rachel.

  5. Daria

    May 20, 2023 at 3:02 am

    Well done!! I have a few similarities. Continuing with my morning routine and Golden Hour (after falling off the wagon last week). Worked out three times this past week although it’s laughable – 15 minutes each but it’s a start. Usually, it’s zero minutes. Medical check-ups: are all on my calendar so I can’t back out. Dentist-every 6 months. I do my yearly mammogram in March b/c it’s March 8th International Women’s Day :)
    Reading- definitely lacking. Scrolling-reduced, proud of myself.

    1. San

      May 21, 2023 at 3:34 pm

      Nice work on the routine. 15 min is always better than nothing… and change happens in small increments ;) Keep it up!

  6. Elisabeth

    May 20, 2023 at 12:55 pm

    Yay, San. I’m so proud of you. All those gold stars are wonderful. Of special note: standing up for yourself. This is so hard to do and yet so necessary. Often the hardest workers tend to shy away from any conflict and yet we need these people to lead and take stands.

    Also, a whole sheet of gold stars for making those appointments. None of those healthcare tasks are “fun” and yet they’re so, so important.

    1. San

      May 21, 2023 at 3:35 pm

      Thanks friend. Standing up for myself is so hard, but I am really trying to get better at it. :) Thanks for your kind words.

  7. Nicole MacPherson

    May 22, 2023 at 5:42 am

    So many gold stars, San! Those are all awesome ESPECIALLY the medical and dental appointments. You’re right, sometimes it’s a pain to make all the appointments, but so very important! It’s such a big part of self care.

  8. Grateful Kae

    May 24, 2023 at 6:27 am

    Well that’s a great list of gold stars!! Some of those seem quite “big” to me, so I’m extra impressed. I think getting a colonoscopy and endoscopy alone should cover you for gold stars for the year, lol!!! ;)

    I can 100% relate on the “competing hobbies” thing. I feel like, in my perfect world, I would have time every single day to: read for at least 30 minutes, walk for ~60 minutes total, workout (strength train and/or cardio), write a blog post, read other blog posts/ comment, journal/ fill out my habit tracker page, sit outside in nature and sip a cup of tea with no other distractions, and cook a healthy meal. HA. If I did ALL of that every day, well, I wouldn’t have much time for anything else now, would I??! It’s not very practical when I also have 2 kids and a full time job and a house to keep up, etc…so I have to be very careful about deciding I want to do “x” every day, because I know it ends up feeling very frustrating to me when I then inevitably “fail” at it.

  9. Kim

    May 24, 2023 at 9:18 am

    Good for you for standing up for yourself at work! And for making those appointments and going! LOL – making them is so hard!

    I should get a strength training demerit too. And a gold star for finding a therapist.

  10. Lisa of Lisa's Yarns

    May 24, 2023 at 10:07 am

    Congrats on standing up for yourself! It can be scary to do but it’s totally worth it.

    For gold stars, I would say surviving and sort of thriving during a challenging period at work. Things have finally calmed down and I’m so glad. But I know I really “earned my stripes” during the last couple of months and have developed/advanced relationships with my sales partners.

    My demerit this week is staying up a little bit too late. I’m usually very good about going to bed by 9:30 but this week I’ve stayed up beyond my bedtime since I was enjoying the book I am reading. It’s not a bad reason to stay up but I really pay for it.

  11. Anne

    June 9, 2023 at 9:35 am

    Can you please tell me how you learned to stand up for yourself? Because yeah. I kind of stink at that. So good for you for doing so – and at work! Even more impressive. :) Being nice does not mean being a doormat. Also, yes yes yes on scheduling ALL the appointments. I make appointments before I leave the previous one so at least I am reminded of it and can reschedule if needed. And oh, the annoying minor work-related activities. So frustrating. I tend to put them off, and then it usually comes back to bite me. :)

  12. Tobia | craftaliciousme

    June 11, 2023 at 6:57 am

    So important to speak up.Glad you are working on it and it gets more comfortable.

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