“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which
you really stop to look fear in the face..."
-Eleanor Roosevelt
What do you think the difference is between Confidence and Arrogance?
Sometimes,
people feel insecure about not being apologetic for their talents, passions,
and having high a self esteem. They feel as if they must lower themselves for
the sake of insecure people, and therefore lose the spark of confidence they
once had.
A couple of weeks ago, I participated in a
Twitter Chat (ZusterChat:
Mondays at 9pm and Thursdays at 12pm BST...if you're a blogger I highly recommend
joining in sometime!) that was all about Confidence and Arrogance. After the
chat, I was talking with some other bloggers who had also really enjoyed the
topic and I thought, "Hey, I should share something about this subject
on my blog." So, here I am!
Honestly, this is a topic I feel very
strongly about because I have been through this many times and I know how
hurtful it can be to have people make assumptions about you when you're truly
just being yourself.
I've always been outgoing and independent.
I'm confident and I love to try new things, and I work hard to better myself
and my talents. Even though these are my natural responses to
life, sometimes I get discouraged by people around me. It makes me want to pull
back or hide away
who I am. I'm sure those of you who
are also naturally confident are nodding your heads in agreement.
Well, I'm here to tell you this: STOP.
Stop allowing others to influence your feelings about yourself.
Negativity, insecurity, and jealousy
spread like weeds.
This is something that I am still in the
process of learning. There was a time in my life where I didn't want to have my
personality anymore. I wished I could be different. And you know what? The second
I began having those thoughts the insecure people began winning.
I was doubting myself all the time, and
feeling very self conscious which frustrated me because that's nothing like my
personality. Who wants to constantly be thinking about whether or not they are
offending someone else?
So I began evaluating my motives for my
passions and talents.
Why do you do what you do?
What is your reason for feeling confident?
Are you overcompensating for your
lack of confidence or do you truly feel that way?
These are some of the questions I had to
ask myself. Through this self discovery, I found that when someone is confident they
don't feel the need to put others down. Instead, they build others
up and encourage them to achieve and pursue their dreams.
Meanwhile, arrogant people find faults in
others and don't really care to help them, either. They also tend to be very
jealous...sometimes to the point where they don't realize it themselves.
Confident people do what they love and be
themselves from their heart. Arrogant people generally have themselves in mind.
Now, this isn't always the arrogant
person's fault. Everyone in this world reflects the treatment they
have received from others. Hurt people hurt people.This,
however does not excuse the behavior. People puff up their egos and
surround themselves with people who tell them what they want to hear and when
someone walks by being who they want to be so effortlessly, it
can feel threatening to them.
Maybe they won't ever say something to
you. Maybe they will just hide their jealousy in their hearts...if that's the
case then all you can do is show love and be yourself. If you are confronted by
someone, be open to privately evaluating yourself. Don't
automatically assume that the person is wrong. Maybe something you've been
doing isn't coming off the way you intend—that's okay. Explain to
that individual what your true intent was, and after that it's on
them. You are in control of you and you alone.
So—Should you stand up for yourself? If
you feel you can do so in a way that represents you and your true
intentions, I would say yes. Usually it
only takes one time for a bully or jealous person to be set straight.
If there is one thing I'd like to leave
with you it's this: Don't get discouraged. My previous encounters with
situations like this made me want to quit doing what I love to do and I
felt miserable because of that.
Please, don't be afraid to be yourself.
Love yourself enough to be okay if someone else doesn't like you. Life will go
on, and they will miss out on getting to know a truly amazing person.
What are your thoughts? Tweet me or talk to me on tumblr. I'd love to
chat with you about this!
xx
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