What Other People Think About You

This is one of my favorite “WAKE UP” poems from Portia Nelson concerning personal growth in Chapter Four of her autobiography. “There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk”.

It is a waste of time and energy
to worry about
what others are thinking
about you.

because …

You can never know
exactly what another person
is thinking …AND,
the worst part is …
they are usually not thinking
about you at all.

They are too busy worrying about
what others
are thinking about them.

So, the truth is, all those terrible thoughts
you thought they might
be thinking about you,
are your own thoughts
about yourself.

Better spend your energy
worrying about that …or,
you just might
convince somebody to think
what you were afraid
they might be thinking
after all.*

Now that hit home didn’t it! Take a moment to consider how your worries about what others think about you, may be your own hidden thoughts about yourself….

We all go through aspects of this as we grow up and find our way in the world, but many of us get stuck along the way.

So much of social media targets our insecurities and outward judgment of others and ourselves. It thrives on gossip, comparison and competition and tries to sell us the answer.

Our thinking always appears through filters in our life experience, the messages we are hearing, and how we relate to others and the world around us.

And now consider … “My thoughts are not the truth”.

* Nelson, Portia. There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk: The Romance of Self-Discovery (pp. 107-108). Atria Books/Beyond Words. Kindle Edition.