As people, it seems like we want to do everything. We want to be the superhero who saves the day, who does all the things, who is the most capable person that has ever existed. I find this especially true with crafters.
Unfortunately, most of the time this just isn’t a possibility.
I get it. I’ve also been the person who said yes to everything to save the day. But that takes a toll on you. This is a hard lesson to learn, but you have to know your limits. And then you also have to enforce those limits, which I think is the harder part.
We are all capable of great things, and understanding where your personal abilities and boundaries lie is important. For example, once upon a time, I did costuming for a small local opera theatre group. We did some great shows, and I was asked to do the next show as well. However, I knew that the costumes for that show would be out of my abilities, given the timeframe and historical information to get the right silhouettes and shapes. I declined to costume that show, which was the right decision for me.
Was it hard to say no? Absolutely! Especially when I had been working with that group for several years at that point. However, I knew I would not be able to produce the number of “correct” costumes in the time frame that they would need them. So I said no.
Boundaries are important. It might take a bit to figure yours out, but it’s a worthwhile exercise.
What boundaries do you have in place in regards to your crafting?