Not everyone will understand your journey. That’s fine. It’s not their journey to make sense of. It’s yours.
Author | Photographer | CG Artist | Filmmaker
Do you care about your friends? Your neighbors? Your community? Local businesses? Your city? If the answer is yes, what are you doing that demonstrates these things in a significant and meaningful way? It’s one thing to think & say that you care. It’s another thing entirely to actively demonstrate it through your actions & lifestyle.
Making a difference means being mindful of the people, places, and things that you can make a difference with and then taking action in a meaningful way. The act of not making things worse is not the same thing as making things better.
The fact is that everyone – on some level – cares what other people think. So the more you try to act cool by making a show of how much you don’t care, the more you betray the image you’re trying to project. Caring about things or what people think is not the issue. Letting other people have control over your sense of self-worth is.
If you’re trying to earn affection or gain favor by propagating whatever sentiments society considers cool at the moment, you’re likely far more guilty of approval-seeking than you want anyone – including yourself – to believe.
DATING PROFILES
Why is it always “Must love dogs.” and never:
Must be kind.
Must be loving.
Must have integrity.
Must have empathy.
Must be open-minded.
Must be able to communicate well.
Must have emotional intelligence.
Must be able to express emotions.
Based on how often “Must love dogs” comes up, you would think that finding men that like dogs is a serious problem in the dating world.
I would think finding men with the other qualities would be a little higher on the list of priorities.
Dating profile: He must have dark hair, be over 6′ tall, fit, successful, have a reputable career, want kids, love to travel, live within 10 miles, and have lots of time for me. No I will not meet you for coffee. If I’m not worth dinner, don’t even bother. No cheap dates!
Same person: “Where did all the good men go?”
“He never listens to me.” “He’s not in tune with what I’m thinking.” “I never really know how he’s feeling.” “I just wish we could have a meaningful conversation.” “He’s bad at showing his emotions.” “He never lets me in.”
Same person: “I want a ‘real man’ (not a sensitive one).”
See the problem(s)?
Be very careful about investing in products that cater to people’s desire for instant results & gratification. This is one of people’s easiest weaknesses to exploit and manufacturers know this. Product makers don’t want your health, they want your money. The fact is, even if a product leads to short-term results, manufacturers are counting on your long-term business by convincing you that you need what they’re selling.
Understand, there is rarely any shortcut or “miracle pill” worth taking and unless you change your habits & priorities at the root level, you’re just catering to your weakness and masking a problem, not fixing one. Unless your strength is built on a solid foundation of self-discipline, you will forever be vulnerable to things beyond your control.
The surprising thing about rejection is how much we allow the fear of it to impact our lives, when in actuality, increasing the rate at which we’re rejected can be extremely beneficial. Putting ourselves in a position where rejection is possible is a sign that we’re attempting something that has the potential to push our boundaries – and by doing so, provide us with something we actually want. And even if we don’t get what we seek, the act of trying to get it provides us with valuable information that can aid us in future attempts & endeavors.
The fact is, by embracing rejection we increase the rate at which we get things we want. No, we won’t always get what we seek, but our attempts at actively getting it are far more likely to yield positive results than if we sit back and do nothing out of fear of being rejected.
