6 Reasons to Stop Caring What Others Think
“Care about what other people think and you will always be their prisoner.” – Lao Tzu
Spring clean your soul and stop caring what others think of you! I used to be a major “people pleaser” - even when it was at the cost of my own health and wellbeing. I wanted to make people happy no matter what. Well, after years of doing this, I became burnt out and a bit bitter and it was no one’s fault but my own. I realized that I do need to care what others think when it comes down to respect and self awareness, but not to the extent where it was making me unhappy.
I don’t need external validation to feel good. Rather, I needed to switch my mindset to seeking internal validation and finding answers within myself. I was reading an article where it said that super successful people don’t worry what others have to say (whether it’s good or bad), because they know how to find confidence, security and happiness, internally as opposed to externally.
Here are my top 6 reasons why you should stop caring what other people think to improve your life and boost your happiness!
1. Look within:
Who is your judge? Look in the mirror! It’s you! You define your success and goals so keep yourself accountable. The person that matters the most is YOU so put yourself first.
2. No one knows what’s right for you:
No one knows you better than you know yourself or what is right for you and your life. Remember that no one is as invested in your life as you are. How will you learn from your mistakes if you are constantly seeking validation from others? Take control of your own decisions.
3. You define success with your goals
Spend time writing down your goals. As I’m getting older, this is the one thing that really helps me define my happiness. Writing down what I want from my career and personal life is helping me achieve success. Reflecting daily or weekly is a good practice to get into. Journaling is one way to reflect or spending time alone at the end of each week writing or thinking about how the week went works too! Only you know what makes you happy or ignites your fire so take control of your goals, make a plan and stick to it!
4. You are the one standing there with your end result
At the end of the day, you are the one who will face the consequences of your decisions - either positive or negative. As humans, it’s hard not to seek validation externally so we can easily make a decision. In the end, you will be living with your choices, not others. I am not saying that if you have a big decision to make, you shouldn’t ever seek opinions. Just don’t let those opinions influence your thinking to the point where you will be unhappy.
5. People don’t care as much as you think they do
Sorry to break it to you, but people don’t care as much as you think they do! I know we all want to think that everyone cares about us deeply, but the truth of the matter is that they are too busy thinking about themselves, and therefore, so should you! This one may be a hard one to accept but its reality.
6. Life is too short!
This precious life we are given is simply too short. Why waste time on worrying what other people think, being a people pleaser and making others happy at your expense. Live your life based on what makes you the happiest. Continuing to search for validation from others will almost guarantee your unhappiness. So I urge you to look within, be confident in who you are, and accept that you aren’t perfect - nobody is! . You will make mistakes and that’s fine. Learn from them and move on.
I still struggle with not being a people pleaser but the last 3 years have been so transitional for me that it’s become more and more clear what steps I need to take to truly feel happy within myself. I have improved significantly at not caring what others think of me, but I am definitely still a work in progress! I hope these tips provide you with some motivation to look within, do what makes you happy, and to stop caring what others think!
