Reflecting On Myself: Expectations And Mistakes

Need help with assignments?

Our qualified writers can create original, plagiarism-free papers in any format you choose (APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, etc.)

Order from us for quality, customized work in due time of your choice.

Click Here To Order Now

An event that has really affected me in my life is when I got my first detention. I never did see it coming. One minute I was just messing around with my friends, the next I had a detention at quarter past one in the afternoon. I couldnt believe it. The shame was like a brick to the face. I felt as if had let everyone down but I felt like I had let myself down the most. And this wasnt a familiar feeling. So this made me start to question myself. Why did this particular event make me feel like this? Was it because I had got caught? No. Was it because it was in front of my friends? I doubt it. Or was it because it wasnt what I expected from myself? Absolutely! I was disappointed in myself because what I had done went against my own expectations of myself. This led me on to think of what do I really expect of myself, how do they make me feel and how does it affect me now in the present.

When I think about it, what I expect of myself really does influence what I do and, at the time, it also affected how I felt. What I had done made me feel sad and ashamed. Two feelings I dont feel very often. When my friends get a detention it doesnt make them feel any of these feelings. In fact, they dont care very much about getting a detention. But when I get a detention, I begin to feel down, ashamed and sorry for myself. And this doesnt just happen when I get a detention; it also happens when I misbehave in general. I think this is all down to my high expectations of myself. They really do control how I think and feel during certain situations. And, to be honest, this isnt really a bad thing because it stops me from making the same bad choices over and over again. In a way, its like a line which I should never cross.

Thinking about it a bit more, what I think of myself also has an effect on my expectations. For example, my ambitions. I believe that after I have left school I will go to university, get my qualifications and then get the job that I want. Then, later on, Ill have a good house, a good car and maybe even have my own family. If I thought very low of myself then I wouldnt have these ambitions. I quite a lot of myself and I know that if I put a little time, thought and effort into something, I can accomplish anything. Another example is how I treat other people. I think of myself as a kind, caring and friendly person so I expect myself to be kind, caring and friendly towards others too. If I wasnt, I wouldnt be a very nice person and I would think quite low of myself. On reflection, I think quite highly of myself so I also have high expectations of myself as well.

When I look back, I realise that I was actually quite glad that I got a detention because I was beginning to let things go a bit so it actually acted as a wake up call. I was becoming unfocused, unorganised and too relaxed. And this would have been a bad thing for me because I like to be ready for anything that comes my way. This is what I expect of myself: to be ready for anything at all times. I think this is a really good expectation to have for myself because life is unpredictable and you never know what might be around the corner. For example, if I had a test I had to revise for and I wasn’t focused enough to revise then I would fail that test. This is why my expectations are important to me. They keep me on the path to success.

In retrospect, I could have chosen various other experiences to reflect on but I specifically chose this one as it is a prime example of a mistake I have made. Mistakes aren’t one of my expectations and this is one of my drawbacks because everyone makes mistakes (including myself).

Need help with assignments?

Our qualified writers can create original, plagiarism-free papers in any format you choose (APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, etc.)

Order from us for quality, customized work in due time of your choice.

Click Here To Order Now