I was talking with a few of my friends and one of them was complaining how she was too light and wanted a tan while another person that was actually dark was complaining how he was too dark and wanted to become lighter. I found it funny that this pattern of wanting something that we don’t have exists in all aspects of our lives — not just with respect to appearance, but material possessions, talents that people have, etc.
For instance, say that person A wishes he had the musical talent like person B does, while person A wishes she had the natural book smarts like person A does. It’s funny because it sometimes comes to the point where both person A and person B are frustrated and call themselves useless and say that they lack talent because they can’t have the other person’s talent. How is it that they can notice the talent the other person has but not acknowledge or appreciate their own talents? This results in a low self esteem for both persons — and for what? They are too engrossed in trying to be like the other person that they disregard their own talents. Songwriter and rock musician Kurt Cobain said it best when he said:
“Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.”
I have seen this happen and have been in this situation countless times. And every time, it pains me to see how people don’t notice the beauty in their own personality because they’re too busy admiring and trying to emulate someone else’s.
There have been previous posts about appreciation but most of those posts were about appreciating others and what they do for you. However, sometimes it’s also good to give yourself a pat on the back every once in a while, otherwise, your self-esteem would plummet. So when you get your results from your exam that you took before, be sure to treat yourself to a fun time as a reward even if you didn’t do as well as you had wanted to compared to person A or person B — you gave it your all and that’s all that matters. If anything, go out and buy yourself a cookie! I promise you’ll feel much better about yourself! 
I was talking with a few of my friends and one of them were complaining how she was too light and wanted a tan while another person that was actually dark was complaining how he was too dark and wanted to become lighter. I found it funny that this pattern of wanting something that we don’t existed in all aspects of our lives- not just with respect to appearance, but material possessions, talents that people have, etc.
For instance, say that person A wishes he had the musical talent like person B does, while person A wishes she had the natural book smarts like person A does. It’s funny because it sometimes comes to the point where both person A and person B are frustrated and call themselves useless and say that they lack talent because they can’t have the talent that the other person has. How is it that they can notice the talent the other person has but not acknowledge or appreciate their own talents? This results in a low self esteem for both the persons and for what? They are too engrossed in trying to be like the other person that they disregard their own talents. Songwriter and rock musician Kurt Cobain said it best when he said:
“Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.”
I have seen this happen and have been in this situation countless times. And every time, it pains me to see how people don’t notice the beauty in their own personality because they’re too busy admiring and trying to emulate someone else’s.
There have been previous posts about appreciation but most of those posts were about appreciating others and what they do for you. However, sometimes it’s also good to give yourself a pat on the back every once in a while, otherwise, your self-esteem would plummet. So when you get your results from your exam that you took before, be sure to treat yourself to a fun time as a reward even if you didn’t do as well as you had wanted to compared to person A or person B- you gave it your all and that’s all that matters. If anything, go out and buy yourself a cookie! I promise you’ll feel much better about yourself! J
Related posts:
- Muhammad Yunus: An exemplary karma yogi?
- Strength, self-abnegation, and self-esteem
- Forgiving Yourself
- A mother’s heart…
- Searching for a solution
One Comment
Someone I respect once phrased this self-appreciation as “accepting myself.” I have a hard time doing so, though. Does anyone have any tips on how to accept who you are without becoming complacent or compromising ambition?
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