Backwards Encouragement

Yes, yes we know. 

Raise your hand if you've heard this quote before?! Same. It's a solid piece of wisdom but I've become a bit numb to its application in my life. With the phenomenon of the selfie and getting as many likes on our social media pages, we are constantly looking for the approval of others and hoping that they think our lives are pretty awesome. We see what other people are doing with their (or what they are not doing off the screen) and we try to create our lives to look just as cool, if not better, than theirs. Or maybe not. Maybe this is just something I have fallen guilty of doing? Well, whether you are with me in this or not - I have some backwards encouragement for you.

In Elizabeth Gilbert's book, "Big Magic" she tells a story of a time she was offered a superb piece of life wisdom from a clever, independent, creative, and powerful woman in her mid-seventies:

"We all spend our twenties and thirties trying so hard to be perfect, because we're so worried about what people will think of us. Then we get into our forties and fifties, and we finally start to be free, because we decide that we don't give a damn what anyone thinks of us. But you won't be completely free until you reach your sixties and seventies, when you finally realize this liberating truth - nobody was ever thinking about you, anyhow."

Ha! Nobody's thinking about you. Pretty twisted encouragement right?

Ok, I know some people are (like my parents are definitely reading this right now and wishing me the best in my creative pursuits) but most people are just thinking about themselves. I have such supportive friends who have encouraged me in this blog - but I know at the end of the day they are more concerned with their own creative pursuits than how many views I get today on my post (and that is totally OK!)  Most of people don't have the time to worry about what you're doing or how successful you are becoming - because they are busy trying to do the same in their own life!

This backwards encouragement might not sit too comfortably with you right now - but think about how freeing it can be for you. There is no need to worry about what they are thinking about you (because they really aren't) so you can go be whomever you desire to be, do what you deeply desire to do, and create the life you know you are meant to live.

"Create whatever you want to create - and let it be stupendously imperfect (like my blog), because it's exceedingly likely that nobody will even notice. And that's awesome." -Elizabeth Gilbert

Sending you joy as YOU do YOU today.

Jordan