We are all born awesome! And we know it!
We think we are superheroes! We wear a red cape. We leap from tall tabletops. We climb trees, flex our biceps, do our power pose, chase down the bad guys, and save the world every afternoon. Because we are invincible when we are five years old. Nothing holds us back from thinking we are simply awesome!
But somewhere along the way, we lost our sense of awesome because someone told us we weren’t awesome, or we fell, or failed, or just didn’t get the laughs or attention we were seeking.
And once that happened, we started judging everyone around us. We had to for self-preservation. We suddenly realized that we weren’t perfect, and so it became our life’s work to find fault with others.
It’s not that we are mean-spirited or want to be hurtful; it’s just, that was how we learned to cope with the judgments of inadequacy that were foisted upon us by others.
We felt angry, sad, and vengeful, so we decided it was only fair that we point out what is wrong with everyone else. But it didn’t stop there. We also decided that since others were faulty, we must be faulty ourselves.
And that is when we began the long, downward spiral of deprecating self-talk, rehashing what others said about us, rehearsing in our minds how right they were, and reviewing our own beliefs from the worst possible perspective.
It’s not a pretty situation, but it happens to most of us. We just can’t help being judgmental toward others and ourselves.
You may say, well yeah, but when we judge ourselves it’s the first step to become better, to improve, to reduce our weaknesses.
Fair enough. But how long does the judging go on? A moment, a minute, an hour? A lifetime?
Judging others is narrow-minded and unhelpful. Judging ourselves is cruel and destructive.
But how do we learn to stop judging ourselves and start nudging ourselves?
Well, the first thing we have to do is reject all of the negative self-talk and reflect on all the positive self-talk.
What? You don’t have much self-talk to reflect on? Well, then look back on all the awesome things you’ve done this week.
- Did you get up and get to work on time? Fantastic!
- Did you have a stressful moment with someone and decide not to bite their head off? Amazing!
- Did you have an argument with someone and be the first to say, “I’m sorry?” Awesome!
These may sound like simple, tiny accomplishments, and yet they are significant, positive triumphs.
You could have decided to go negative on each of them, but you didn’t. You chose to be responsible; you chose to remain calm; you chose to be more caring and loving.
These are just some of the ways each of us displays our own version of awesome to the world and to ourselves.
When we stop judging ourselves into dreadful negativity and start nudging ourselves into helpful positivity, we begin to realize we do a lot more good than bad; we get up instead of sleep in, we forgive instead of berate, we apologize instead of begrudge.
It won’t be easy trying to find the little wins each day. You’ll need to look deep. You’ll need shift your perspective. You’ll need to honor your daily accomplishments.
Make it fun, start a club, be your own biggest fan, and cheer as loud as you can!
Because you’re the only one who is with you all day long. You’re the only one who sees all the amazing things you do each day. You’re the only one who can make you feel the way you feel.
Don’t let the agents of despair drag you down. Don’t let one small setback ruin your day. And don’t let anyone dictate your level of awesomeness.
Because, you know what? You’re still as awesome as you were when you five!
Your Mindful Moment:
Restrain your judgment, reframe your negativity, and regain your invincibility!
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