Last week these 2 sweet Huskies wandered into our garage as I was cleaning the freezer. (Aren't they the cutest?!)

After unsuccessfully trying to find their owners in our neighborhood (and on Facebook), we put them in the backyard for the night. The last thing we wanted was to have them get hit by a car.

The next day, we took them to the vet to scan for microchips. (No luck.) I posted on all the social media sites for lost dogs. I did All. The. Things.

Many people helped by sharing the posts. Many others gave advice about other sites/groups/rescues to post to. And I dutifully followed each suggestion. For a while.

But each response contained several new action steps that, after a while, felt overwhelming. One gal even told me I had to make fliers and hang them all over town! (I did NOT do that.)

As the days wore on, I became more and more exhausted by the effort to find the owners. And I began to feel stressed and resentful. After all, they weren't even my dogs! Following up on all the notifications started to feel like a full-time job. And I have my own furry beasts to take care of - as well as my family.

I always apply my work to my own life, and as I analyzed why I felt resentful, I realized 2 things.

One, I was trying to live up to the expectations of other people. Following one suggestion after another in a never-ending rabbit hole of doing what other people told me to. I joined apps and groups I didn't want to, and fielded all the responses (NONE of which were from the owners). The vet wanted to me de-worm them and give them a full series of vaccinations. (Again, not my dogs...)

Not only that, but I was feeling GUILTY for all the things I WASN'T doing. Which leads me to realization #2:

I was taking responsibility for things that WEREN'T my responsibility to take. (The GUILT was evidence of that.) Yes, I took on a level of accountability when we sheltered them for the night. But what about the OWNER'S responsibility? Surely it was not ALL up to me to reunite them. (The OWNER should have been putting up fliers and posting on all the lost dog sites as well.)

When I work 1-on-1 with clients to stop their self-sabotage and end imposter syndrome so they have the confidence to go after their dreams, I find that these 2 pitfalls are almost universal: on some level, they live (or have lived) by the expectations of other people; and they often take responsibility for what's not theirs to take.

It leads to guilt, resentment, frustration. Being insecure in yourself, your abilities, and your worth. It leads to LOSING yourself, playing small, and watching your dreams drift further and further away.

Where are you taking responsibility for what's not yours to take? In your life and your business. Where are you living up to the expectations of other people and thus not being true to yourself?

Examine these 2 pitfalls. See how each one affects your confidence and your sense of self-worth.

Once you're aware of it, it's much easier to DEAL with it so you can be more confident, stop chasing achievement for your worth, and experience more joy and fulfillment in every aspect of your life.

Because you're worth it.