Something that has shaken me to my very core over the past few years is how horribly mean we are to ourselves. I mean, really, we think and say things to ourselves that we wouldn't even say to our worst enemy! We surely wouldn't say such things to our best friends and family, yet, we are undoubtedly, absolutely cruel to ourselves.
I would like to think that in my 41 years on this earth, I have helped a lot of people. Unfortunately, I have also learned that not everyone wants to be helped or understands HOW TO BE HELPED. For example, I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have tried to help an individual with self-esteem issues. Our conversations would play out something like this:
They would reveal that they are really bad with self-deprecation (cutting themselves down). I would very cheerily tell them that awareness is the key and that every time they think something negative thought about themselves, that they should stop themselves and replace it with a compliment. For example, if you just told yourself that you are too stupid for college, stop yourself, and tell yourself that you are totally smart enough for college.
These people would go out into the world all motivated only to tell me a few days later that they already stopped. Why? Because it felt weird. It felt foreign. It felt uncomfortable.
Let me get this straight. IT FELT WEIRD, FOREIGN AND UNCOMFORTABLE TO BE NICE TO YOURSELF?
How sad. And also, how accurate. It is very foreign to be kind to ourselves. Heck, many of us have a a hard time being nice to anyone!
So my challenge for you this week is simply self-awareness. Are you the "mean girl" or "mean guy" when it comes to yourself? Do you feel self-centered when you aren't? Comment below and lets talk about it!!
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