For the person who doesn’t feel like enough...
I’ve been there. I think at some point we all have. It is okay to feel like you aren’t enough. Unfortunately there is no magical cure-all for feeling inadequate or sub-par. However, there are lessons to be learned from this feeling.
It was difficult for me to accept that I was not going to be the best at anything I did by far. Someone would always be better than me, and I didn’t like that. I guess that’s what happens when you have a Type A personality. There are so many people in my life that I consider amazing at what they do. Everyone is a better CJ or WGS major than I am. Everyone in my chapter is a better sister than I am. There are so many women (and men) that are better feminists than I am. Sometimes I think I have too many cooks in the kitchen (excuse the bad cliche). I have never been great at one thing. I’ve always been good at many things. That really used to bother me. I did not enjoy being the person that had no clue about what I wanted to do with life. I knew so many people in high school that had a talent, and have continued to pursue their talent to this day. Some of those people have even gone off to college specifically for their talent. In this context, I have never felt like I am enough for the people in my life. For quite some time, I thought that to be enough for someone, I had to be the best at something, anything. As I’ve grown, I’ve learned that sometimes it might actually be better to not have one specific talent.
You can do so much with your life when you’re good at multiple things. This isn’t to say that people who are amazing at one thing can’t do anything with their lives. I just know that sometimes it isn’t easy to be positive about yourself when you’re surrounded by people that have a set talent, or even multiple talents. But you also can’t force yourself to be better at something. It takes time, patience, and a lot of practice. You feel like you aren’t good enough, like you aren’t worthy enough, like you don’t deserve more. That’s not true.
Embrace the things you are good at. Stop comparing yourself to the other people in your lives. It can be difficult to love yourself for who you are, but you’re the only one that can do it. There’s something so wonderful about learning to love yourself and your talents. When you truly love and embrace yourself, a new world opens up to you (cue "Aladdin" music). As cheesy as that sounds, I’ve learned that it is in fact the truth in the situation. You learn about your strengths, and you learn about your weaknesses. Being good at many things is not a weakness. It is a strength. I know this because I’ve learned to embrace it. You become a well-rounded person. You develop and continue to build on all kind of skills. You become more than enough for someone. You will always be enough. You will always deserve love. You deserve to get what you want out of life. Just because you may not be the best at something, or have a great talent, don’t feel like you’re not enough. You are your own person. That’s all you ever need to be.
