Week 5 MKMMA...opinionated...

Let me tell you what I think about......oh never mind!

The challenge this week was to have no opinions...don't share them, don't give them when asked unless you're an expert on the subject (as in with your job), and don't think them.

Wait, what? I'm as opinionated as it gets! Like seriously, this shirt should be mine! (This picture showed up in my FaceBook feed the day after the challenge was given. Perfect!)

Trying to go through the week without opinions was near impossible for me. I had to stop myself many times...and failed at it just as many times too!

Especially right now, with local elections happening, I have been asked about voting options and ballot questions...by my adult kids, friends, and even co-workers. I'm not an expert in that area, but people around me know that I do look at everything thoroughly and with an open mind, and even though I am quite opinionated about certain things, my opinion is sought by those who want to know both sides of an issue (amendment questions and such) because sometimes it's hard to decipher which way to vote with the hidden wording and agendas tucked into them. I tried to be concise with facts and not give my opinion on things, but this was a toughie!

In my house it's hard to have a conversation without giving opinions. We all like to have good discussions and debates on all kinds of subjects, often playing devils' advocate just to get each other thinking...and sometimes just to get under each other's skin...for fun. I know, we're a bit strange, but I love the mental stimulation we get from each other.

Actually though, it was pretty easy to keep my unsolicited opinions to myself for the most part...except for the one time when I reacted verbally with "well, that's just stupid" after finding out we were having an unexpected, surprise walkthrough at work. (Give me a break here, it was Friday, the week was a hot mess with multiple meetings and interruptions, and we had all felt the ridiculous effect of the full moon quite noticeably!) 

The biggest challenge was dealing with the mental opinions...about myself...the negative, self-deprecating thoughts and opinions that pop into my head, and sometimes out of my mouth. I've already been trying to catch myself prior to this exercise, this just helped bring it to the forefront of my thoughts and helped to show me when I was doing it.