Beware the One-Egg Basket

When we use the aphorism, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” we’re generally referring to options outside of ourselves. We diversify investment portfolios, apply to multiple colleges, send our resumes out to a variety of companies, and even date several people before settling down.

But for some reason, when it comes to our sense of ourselves, we seem to be operating with just one egg.

When we give our all to project and then it doesn’t succeed, we think we’re a total failure.

When we give our all to a project and it does succeed, we think we’re a total success.

And worst of all: When our inner critic harps on our worst feature, we feel like losers.

It’s as if we think we have a basket that can only fit one egg at a time and that one egg defines all of who we are for all time.

We are more than one action. When we fall, we need to get back up and try again. When we succeed, we need to keep paying attention because time hasn’t stopped and we’re not yet done.

Beware the one-egg basket.