A short spoken reflection (YouTube monologue) by Lennon Bone about feelings of inadequacy tied to the word "should." The speaker argues that "should" undermines momentum, and recommends leaving visible reminders of progress—"breadcrumbs" or "stone monuments"—to reward effort, grow patience, and build momentum through kindness to oneself.
And there are so many days when I feel like I should have done more, I should have created more, should have posted more, I should have planned more. The word should is like a shovel. And every time I say it, I'm digging a hole underneath me. The deeper I go and the harder I know it's gonna be to pull myself out. And then I resist doing the work because it feels like I'll never get it all together again. Do you remember the story of Hansel and Gretel? To keep themselves from getting lost, they left breadcrumbs behind them so they could find their way back. What if every time we took a step, even if it was just one, we had something that we could look back on to show us how far we've come? In biblical times, they would actually build these stone monuments to remind them when they had received the blessing. So what can you set behind you to remind you every time you take a step? What can you do that rewards you for the work you're doing rather than shaming you for the work that you're not creating? Momentum doesn't happen by, like, beating it into us. We create momentum through patience, love and grace, continuing to look back at the evidence of how far we've come.
