Should I push through or cancel? I'm stuck overthinking and can't make a decision.
I'm currently dealing with a dilemma, and I'm hoping some outside perspectives might help me finally make a decision.
In about three weeks, I'm supposed to have a booth at a collectors' convention. It's something I've genuinely been looking forward to all year (and i've done it twice before). I create and sell my own handmade stickers and screen printed shirts, and I've already invested a lot of time, money, and energy into designing, making, and preparing everything for this event. But i haven't screenprinted any actual shirts yet which is one of the most costly parts.
I was also planning to run the booth together with my mom, which makes it even more special to me, I don't do much together with her. I also plan on never doing selling at a booth again (it's been fun but ultimately not for me) so this would be my final goodbye to it. I think it would be such a lovely experience to share with her, and it's something we've both been looking forward to.
But now that the event is getting closer, I'm starting to dread it more and more.
I'm still a student, I work parttime alongside my studies, and I've been dealing with quite a lot of stress lately. There's also still a huge amount of work that needs to be done over the next few weeks to get everything ready. Just thinking about all those preparations makes me feel overwhelmed.
Because of that, I've seriously started considering cancelling.
But that's not an easy decision either. If I cancel, I'll probably lose around €200–€500, which is a pretty significant amount of money for me. On top of that, I'd miss out on the experience with my mom, the atmosphere of the convention, meeting people, and something I've been looking forward to for such a long time.
On the other hand, I keep wondering whether it's really worth pushing myself even harder over the next few weeks when I'm already feeling stretched so thin.
The most frustrating part is that I just can't seem to make a decision.
I've ended up in this weird state of paralysis where I'm barely doing any preparations because I don't know if I'm actually going, but I'm also not cancelling because I'm afraid I'll regret it. Meanwhile, the event keeps getting closer, which only adds to the stress.
I've also considered just going with whatever I've already made, lowering my expectations, and accepting that my booth won't be exactly how I originally imagined it. But even that would still require quite a bit of preparation and energy.
So, what would you do in my situation?
Would you push through, knowing that it might turn out to be a really wonderful experience and something you'd be glad you did afterwards? Or would you accept the financial loss and prioritize your peace of mind?
I know that ultimately I'm the only one who can make this decision, but I would really appreciate hearing your experiences and perspectives. I'm hoping that seeing things from a different angle might finally help me make up my mind.
Thanks for reading! ❤️
TL;DR: I've been looking forward to selling my handmade creations at a convention with my mom all year, but with studying, working, and lots of preparations still left, I'm feeling completely overwhelmed. Cancelling would mean losing €200–€500 and missing out on a special experience with my mom, but pushing through might add even more stress. I'm stuck in decision paralysis, afraid I'll regret either choice. Would you push through or prioritize your mental well-being?