Quotes and sayings are abundant in my life, and a must. Each day I choose a quote to share with you to carry through your day or hit you just right when you need it most.
When I arrive at my desk each day, the first thing I do is flip to the current date and read the quote of the day. You didn’t doubt for one second that I wouldn’t have a desk quote calendar, did you?!
Some mornings it’s a powerful one and others, not so much. Yet as I move through my day, often that daily quote will pop into mind – whether it is an affirmation for something I’m feeling or, an interaction or experience reminds me of those words, it stays with me most days.
I’m the person who seeks lessons from events, looks for signs to guide me and feel those random moments of providence. It’s a way of life, a sense of meaning and hope that sustains me. Sometimes I find them. Sometimes they find me. And sometimes, a day is just a day with nothing more than gratitude for waking up that morning.
A quote this week has stuck with me. Both the insecurity and ego of others, myself included from time to time, triggered the reminder of words I’d read: “Find the beauty in others, but don’t ever doubt the beauty in yourself.”
Wise words, yet tough to live by. Beauty to me is like an onion with many layers to peel off. Yes, there’s physical beauty because it’s a shallow world – even in today’s day and age, despite our body beautiful campaigns and a multitude of other good intentioned initiatives. People can be ugly, leading me to the beauty that comes from within – and the mean folks, well, they’re purely unattractive.
There can also be beauty in someone’s thoughts, actions and behavior. There’s the beauty of a moment. Theres beauty all around us if we make the time to take notice.
But why is it that we doubt ourselves in the presence of it? Why do we feel insecure or inadequate when we think someone is more attractive or smarter than us? Why do we feel the need to outwit someone to prove ourselves worthy and important? Insecurity and ego can, and do, rob us of our own beauty.
When we perceive someone or something to be better than us, we tend to doubt ourselves. Human nature in many cases. Doesn’t mean they’re better, equal to, or less than us. They are simply being them, and they are different than us. End of story.
So the next time you catch yourself comparing yourself with others or trying madly to outshine them in an effort make yourself look better, stop – then ask yourself why.
We may perceive them to be better but in this case, perception is not reality. We are holding ourselves hostage to a false or imagined ideal when we compare ourselves to others in a negative way. It’s fine to want to emulate the positive behaviors of people or get healthier because you were inspired by someone’s fit physique. But never doubt your own beauty, value or worth by casting yourself in someone else’s shadow.
It takes work and enormous self-awareness to find the beauty in others without doubting your own. But with mindfulness and practice, you can learn to quiet your ego, quell your insecurity – and genuinely be your very own beautiful self.
