Be Your Own Friend
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A few weeks ago an impromptu collaboration on Twitter led to the creation of this meme: I enjoy and appreciate the many self-other love and growth loops in my life, and I think there is a lot to be gained from internalizing that you get to be your own friend. It's simple but not always easy: treat yourself how you want your friends to treat you. See the good in who you are and what you do. Take good care of yourself. When you're your own friend, your friendships are resilient because you can give and receive the truth about growth areas and mistakes and shortcomings. You appreciate everyone's courage and vulnerability for receiving each other's perspectives. You take your friends' feedback seriously, but you are the final authority on your choices. You don't outsource your sovereignty to your friends, that's not their responsibility. Being your own friend is the ultimate port in the storm of life. Other people may at times judge you and misinterpret you and hurt your feelings. Your friendship with yourself is the solid ground that lets you support yourself when emotions are heightened and ruptures occur. You can relax in any environment because you've got yourself. You get to enjoy the longest, deepest, and most intimate friendship of your life. Announcement: I am hosting Look At My Projects September on Twitter! To participate, simply talk about and share at least one of your projects in September. You can do this on any social media or offline. If you have made or done something interesting, then it's worth sharing :^) |
@strangestloop
Asking is a skill which also makes it a game. It's a cooperative game between the asker and the askee and I'm going to describe a few examples I was in close proximity to recently in order to see what this game involves: The group asked for the delicious off-menu dessert and they got it. They had an advantage in that there was only upside. Since they weren't attached to getting the dessert, their circumstances would either stay as they were or they would get better. So an acceptance of any...
I have no words on this newsletter day, instead there's a pleasant combination of body relaxation and mental emptiness. As a frequent thinker this quiet in my head feels wonderful. I have been practicing boredom and gratitude and being with things as they are rather than wishing they were different. When negativity arrives I get to be with it, and then when I arrive at emotional neutrality I can overcome the negativity, which feels increasingly important to me. The obstacles are the point....
As I move towards the life I want, which at different moments feels like sprinting in an open field on a cool and breezy day, or arranging books on shelves one after another after another, or sighing at the sight of a tall brick wall (which might simply topple over the moment I dare to press against it), I am fascinated by the power of directing my attention. By choosing where to focus I can put myself in a state of confidence or despair or excitement. There's that saying about how you can't...