Life without worrying about, or even for a moment considering, what other people think of you is the most freeing thing you can imagine.
Why would we ever allow the opinions of others to affect us in any way?
Growing up, I remember how important it felt to fit in, to have a group that I belonged to. There were kids who did their own thing, who were uniquely different, and the other kids were quite cruel to them.
People who operate outside of the box are considered rebellious, and we can become uncomfortable in their presence.
But if you try to be the same as everyone else, the contribution you are here to offer the world is never realized. The full realization of who you are is stifled.
Changing who you are to find approval from without is limiting the full expression of who you are.
In truth, no one actually knows who we are at the deepest level, just as we know no one else. All of our experiences go into the development of who we are, and there isn’t anyone alive who can pretend to know what we have been through.
Judgments are based on preconceived notions, snapshots in time that do not represent the truth. They are also clouded by personal viewpoints, as we are only able to assess others based on what we ourselves have been through.
By limiting others, we give ourselves permission not to begin moving in the direction of our dreams. As long as others around us are acting small, we are comfortable with that and don’t feel challenged to be more.
If someone close to us breaks free and accomplishes great things, sometimes we are more envious than happy for them. It forces us to look at where we are and who we have become.
Another’s success can remind us that we aren’t moving in the direction of our own. And if someone else achieves what we want, then we think there is less of it for us to get.
When you operate from a scarcity mentality, thinking that if someone else is doing well and that will somehow diminish what you are able to achieve, you cheat yourself out of the joy that is found in being happy for others.
Being jealous or envious of them stops the creative flow and impairs your own ability to manifest success.
A generous heart is a happy heart. Operating from a creative instead of a competitive mindset, you free yourself to celebrate the success of others as you achieve your own. There are no limits in this world, and there is no struggle to do what you are here to do.
The success of another can in no way limit your own, but it can inspire you to continue to do your best and to strive towards what you want to achieve.
Share in and enjoy the achievements of those around you, and in doing so you give yourself permission to reach for your own dreams. Be generous in every way, and the universe will respond in kind.
Be the unique, wonderful you who you are!