I participate in Five Minute Friday. Set the timer for 5 minutes and freewrite with the word provided. Find the link up here.
Set the timer and GO!
I am measure against other people all the time externally. This past 2 weeks I have been struggling to get anything more published. I am measured against the other submissions that are coming in. There are criteria I am up against as well I am aware of but it doesn’t always take the sting out of the rejection. Gladly, many of the letters came with a little feedback which was encouraging.
Many times in my life I have been in competition with people – sometimes only on their side. Now I mostly measure myself with my own set of agreements – not anyone else’s.
I measure what kind of writer I am by the fact that I write every day. It is not measured by how much I publish or don’t. I am in a community of writers. There are outside measures like critiques, evaluations, and feedback but I don’t always take them to heart.
I am a coach and a teacher which have its own measures and criteria by definition. I guess I measure myself by labels. There are sets of critical attributes of what I believe are the fundamentals of what each of those labels entails. There are also universal attributes for these labels as well.
How do I measure success? In the ACTION. The doing is more impressive to me than the reward or sometimes even the outcome. That is a measure from the outside and a factor I cannot often control.
“What can I control?” has become a mantra for me when in a situation with obstacles. It makes a huge difference to my mindset. I cannot control others – that I know for sure.
Tammy L. Breitweiser 
Kind of along the lines of wondering if we’re good enough for xyz! Good words, Tammy!
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As a fellow teacher, I know the challenge of measuring other people constantly…and the struggle of comparing myself to others. I hope you find a good balance for yourself!
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The pain today’s beyond belief
and my life, it doesn’t fit.
But I’m doing more than just OK
because I didn’t quit.
If cancer wins…now, hear me out,
I won’t have lost a thing
and there will be scant call to pout,
but a victory-bell to ring.
I kept my dreams alive each day
and never broke the trust
that I’d keep on, come what may,
and not leave them to rust.
Success is not a polished end;
it’s all about the blood you spend.
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I really like your thoughts here, and can relate very much. I like the idea of measuring success by action, not results. You’re so right – we can control the former but not the latter, so the former is where we need to put our energy and emphasis. Thanks for this!
Jeannie (#30 in linkup this week)
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Pingback: #FMF Measure – Tammy’s Reading/Writing Life | The Reluctant Poet
I love the idea of free writing off of one word. You certainly show how it can be reflective and productive. I am going to try the Five Minute link after I post this. There is a website I sometimes use, with students, too: http://www.oneword.com. The time is 60 seconds though.
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Thanks for the recommendation!
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I like your idea of measuring success by what we can control rather than what we can’t.
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What an exciting motivation.
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We definitely cant control others! I agree! I like the definition of measure you have for yourself! I think its a wise way to go about it!
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