I Do Care What Other People Think.
I was sitting in my neighbour’s garden having a drink with her and her sister who was visiting. Her sister kept looking at me and eventually I asked her what was wrong, thinking “Oh God don’t tell me I’ve been sitting here for the last half hour with a boogie coming down my nose”……….
She cocked her head to one side and said “There is something different about you”, immediately I said "well I cut my hair last week and it’s shorter than I usually have it."
She replied “No it’s not that, there is something about the way you are acting, speaking, loking even it’s as if something inside you has changed”.
I looked across at my neighbour and we smiled at each other and I went on to explain that I had listened to some criticism about me and not liking what I heard, I had taken time to step back and notice my actions and tone of voice when I spoke and the fact that I kept people at arms length and realized that yep the criticisms were founded, and so I had been trying to be gentler, taking time to think before I reacted to something that had been said, when I was about to criticize someone for their behaviour or words, I stopped and checked to see if those things were part of the way I was,then rather than criticize the other person for them I would correct them in myself. Rather than complain that this or that isn’t working, or this or that never happens to me, I now look at the part I am playing in getting things right for me and if I need to adjust my actions I do so, or I accept it is out of my hands and let it go, or I ask for another’s opinion in case they can see something I’m missing.
She looked at me and said “well I’ve got to say it shows my dear, it really shows”.
Now those words of my neighbour’s sister meant so much to me, this is someone who I’ve met a few times and who never really interacted with me, now I know why, it had nothing to do with her and all to do with me. It made me realize that I do care what people think of me, even if I go about saying who gives a monkeys left hand print what others think. If I didn’t care what others think then others couldn’t hurt me.
I now realize that caring what others think of you doesn’t mean you are weak or you have to always comply with their wishes or their way of doing things, what it does mean is you have the ammunition to use on yourself to make yourself a better person. Remember there will always be someone who doesn’t care for who you are, you can’t expect everyone to like you, but you should always expect to like yourself.
Blessings.