When I Say I Got This… I Mean the Following…
I Got This… When I say to myself or someone else, “I got this…” what am I really saying? Sometimes I mean, I’ve never done this b4 but I’m building confidence. Sometimes I mean, I’ve done this before and I’ve done ok so I still think I don’t need help. Or it can mean, I’m scared sh*tless to do this, but I’m going to do it anyway. Often for me, I’m scared but also don’t want to ask for help. I’m used to just “white-knuckling” my way through. If I ask for help, you’ll certainly see what a fraud I am.
Here are my real-life examples of, I got this. The good – learning a new skill The bad – moving stuff. The ugly – navigating my emotions.
“I Got This”… the Good
I like to learn new things. I am learning Italian and taking other classes. The good part of, “I got this…” is that when learning a new skill, I seem to be able to fight off the need to do it exactly right while I’m learning. I just read a quote, “you can’t be creative and analytical at the same time.” Well, it may be possible, but it’s really hard. The creative brain needs confidence. It needs freedom and a playful spirit. These are the antithesis of analysis. When I say, “I got this” … learning… what I’m telling myself is that it’s okay to make mistakes, look like a fool, express myself.
“I Got This”…The Bad
I bought a used filing cabinet online. The person offered to deliver it to me but I said, “No, I’ll come pick it up.” There was no reason for me pick it up, but I just thought, I got this. Ugh, what was I thinking?
I get to the person’s house and it turns out to be much heavier and bigger than I thought. The person offered to drive it the short distance to my house. I had to say yes because it wouldn’t fit in my car. When we got to my house, the person offered to bring it in to my house. I said, “No, I got this.” WHY? Why did I say this? It’s heavy, it’s big, I don’t got this. Arghhhh. A few days later I did manage to get it into the house, but it took a long time.
“I Got This”… The Ugly
I am getting ready to move, again (Third time in 3 years). It’s not far from where I live now but the idea of disrupting my daily routine is a bit overwhelming. I say to myself, “I got this…” but the truth is, it’s hard and I wish I could just tell someone how awful it feels to have to move again. Listen, I am NOT complaining. I live in a beautiful place and it’s my choice to rent right now. The deal is that because I rent, moving is inevitable. I’m just saying that I am learning how to tell people when things are hard for me instead of just acting like… “I got this.” I got it, but I don’t have to “got it” alone. Oh boy, people are complicated!
What do you think?