Thinking positively does not mean rejecting everything that is said to us we don't like. We must consider the source and the motive before deciding if the comment deserves true merit or not. Sometimes it does us good to hear something not so great about us from a loving place, maturity is knowing this and learning to accept critism with gratitude, advanced personal development. However we are living in a world where people are obsessed with the act of projecting their own behaviour on to that of others. So why do we care so much about what others think of us?
The truth is we are in denial about what our own truth actually is. When we find ourselves talking openly about our lifestyle, we immediately allow others to consider what we are doing and comment upon it. In reality it would make more sense to keep quiet and pay attention to what we are actually doing than what those around us are thinking, looking inward first before looking outward.
There is no such thing as a normal template for life, what is normal to you may be completely abnormal to someone else, so we have to be open to listen and learn from our fellow human beings remembering what people say about you that is wrong, is probably what is wrong with them. When people judge others it is a copying mechanism to protect themselves from what they fear to true deep down or just don't want to believe.
Take a woman in her seventies, glamourous, fabulous, fun, still working, never married, of course she must be a freak because she's not like us. Should she be subjected to eyes down staring or machine gun fire rounds of questioning? Take a gay teacher working in a Catholic school forced in the closet but with an amazing track record in inspiring students to achieve greatness. Should he be subjected to homophobic bullying by any of us, regardless of any faith based belief system? Or the transgender male, carrying a child? Is it really anybody else's business.
We are all fantastic with unique qualities and contributions to give to this world, regardless of what we may believe in private. Ralph Waldo Emerson said "The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend" and "Do not follow where the path may lead. go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail." Mark Twain mused “It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.”
If you've got to listen to anyone, why not start listening to the work of genius instead.
Photo by: Jonas Lee Unsplash