Limited Abilities Part 2

To determine what has to change for me to become a better version of who I was yesterday, I must honestly examine who I am today. These words fueled my resolve to stay focused on not going easy on myself. During this self-reflection, I measured who I am today against who I aim to be. If your goal is to improve, you must have an undistorted point to compare against any new data points.

I decided that the best course of action was to confront the problem directly. If the restraints that I have placed on my abilities are valid, I should be able to find confirmation. To avoid succumbing to my perceived constraints, I chose against subjecting myself to each scenario again. Instead, I looked to the past, discerning my overall performance in pursuit of the truth.

I have to be cautious about playing sports. If I play too hard, I'll reaggravate my previous injuries.

Being safe when playing sports has always been my goal. Showing restraint during competition prompts me to fight with my body and feels unnatural. Being cautious has produced awkward movements and landings that add more risk to myself and those participating. I have not sustained or aggravated any injuries when playing to my heart's content.

I have to slow down. I am not as young as I used to be.

I am not as young as I used to be. I have participated in various physical activities over the years and continually pushed my limits. My struggles have led to an increase in speed, stamina, flexibility, and agility. I attribute my progress to the experience that I lacked when I was young.

I am not good at remembering names.

I could say that I am not good at remembering names. What makes this assessment dishonest is that I have not put much energy into remembering. Previously when I met someone that I had no intention of seeing again, I did not make any effort to remember who they were. I relied on face recognition and planned to listen for their name if I ever saw them again. Conversely, I was able to recall names when I committed to retaining them.

I don't have to remember things. I have a smartphone for that.

Using my smartphone instead of committing things to memory seemed like a good idea until I started having trouble with my device. When I face problems with my device, I have to depend on my capacity to recall specific information. Without this information, I would be unable to reach technical support or activate a new device. Although I have relied on my smart devices to remember and remind me of information, I have also done well without assistance.

Now that I am older, it is too hard to learn new languages.

For over a decade, I have been telling myself that it is too hard to learn new languages. In retrospect, it seems like this was my excuse to avoid learning new languages, but it did not work. Over the years, I have unintentionally learned several new languages. I now imagine what I am capable of since I acquired so much knowledge while attempting to avoid the task.

What evidence do you have to support maintaining your constraints?

I don't have any evidence to support maintaining my constraints. All of the evidence that I have found indicates that my perceived limitations were weak and continuously failing. I was doing the things that I was telling myself that I could not do and saw better results when I ignored the voices in my head, instructing me not to push harder. As I told myself of my downfall, I persevered.