Done? Take Time to Appreciate and Reflect

#fleeting and very WiP

I know that this is obvious to many people reading this. It is obvious to me (except when it isn't.)

I realised very late in my life how important/useful it is to appreciate the results of our work. I use work in a very broad sense, this could be a thing I made, a thing I did, an app I shared, a visit at the climbing gym.

I tend to hyper-focus on the task and move on to the next one as soon as I'm done. This seems pragmatic: your time will be better spent on solving the next problem, making the next thing. I was also brought up to err on the side of modesty.

Here's the problem with this approach:

First, this does not mean that I won't ruminate/worry about something I'm unhappy about.

Not paying attention to successes (broadly defined), or noticing how I felt after making the effort, makes it harder for me to motivate myself to improve. It's just sticks and no carrots.

Side note: Catechism of the Catholic Church defines Pride/haughtiness as the first Cardinal Sin. (But, the Polish word for pride in this context also means yummy.)

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a giant foot-shaped snail with a house on its back. the house is still in construction, with a big crane towering above it The image is a stylized black-and-white illustration. In the lower left corner, there is a small, cozy-looking house with smoke rising from its chimney. The smoke, however, does not dissipate into the air but instead forms a dark, looming cloud. Within the cloud, the silhouette of a large, menacing face is visible, with its eyes and nose peeking through the darkness. The creature, perhaps a cat, appears to be watching over the house ominously, creating a sense of foreboding or unease.