On my morning exercise with my friends I met with an elderly woman. Though we have seen each other a couple of times and exchanged smiles, she took the effort to come and say hello to all of us.
She comes across as a very confident person and during the course of our conversation, she distinctively mentioned with teary eyes , that it is very important for all of us to stand up for ourselves . Long story short, she is 75 years young and at this milestone of life she is still seeks an approval for her decisions from her family. Even a decision to meet her 98 year old ailing mother.
It seemed that her ability to take a stand for herself was gone ….or was it never there?
This actually made me ponder “What stops us from taking a stand for ourselves”?
• What are we really scared of?
• What do we fear?
• What hold us back?
• Why do we give the power away?
Sometime we are so vary of the consequences of saying No, that we don’t really say it , other times we may have a threat of losing a friend, a spouse or relationship …and if they are the only ones we are holding on to …we may actually be more frightened than otherwise. If we believe we are doing it to maintain a relationship, then are we really true to that relationship …and any relationship with inner imbalance can’t do too well can it ? So our primary purpose is defeated.
And in turn what we are doing is that we are suffocating ourselves, inviting others to emotionally damage us! The larger question each one of us needs to answer is that if we are happy in the state we are in today . If not …what do we need to do differently?
One can continue to blame others for the state one is in, but tell me if we don’t love ourselves enough to take care of our self , how we can expect anyone else to do it. If we believe that we will not be able to, write that book , make contributions to the world, start a new venture, create a wonderful relationship, follow our heart, take a break ,take a risk, and stand firm to what we really desire , then how can anyone possibly do it for you ? Do we even believe that we actually have the power to change our chosen response to a situation? Do we have faith in the steps we can take? Do we trust the larger universe?
It’s not always about taking a drastic step, it’s about first recognizing what you want , believing that you can get it and then following it …with your heart and soul.
As Dr. Covey Says” If you know where you want to go , your chances of getting there are higher !
Speaking up and Standing up is a skill we can acquire with practice and time!
Take charge! Love Yourself! Take care of yourself! Believe in this magnificent creation of God- YOU ! Is there really a right time to stand upright to do things we want to do….Well there is never a wrong time to do the right thing. NOW is the moment to be the change!
Superbbb n very well put..
Thankyou Shipra
Very beautifully captured reality of most of us ….. A FEAR of losing something or someone makes us forget ourself.
Well done Ruchi !!!!
beautiful article…..no interaction is small or big. Even the smallest of exchange can make you pause and think….go beyond….act and stand up for yourself and your loved ones…
If your mind believe it you can achieve it… Completely agree with Ruchi, this unknown fear of losing someone or hurting someone is not only destroying us psychologically but also affecting our relation with our loved ones. Thanks for writting it so beautifully Ruchi. Now is the moment to be the change ?
It’s an article which leaves a lot of questions for us to ponder in life. Great eye opener. It’s all with in us. We have the power and we at times become the barrier to that abundant power.Time to lift the barriers and start believing in our selves and take our own decisions.
Very well written and articulated. …I have stood up for myself many a times…and as rightly said…it’s not easy!!! This article is very motivating and encouraging for those who are yet to do it……..!!!
Super!!
Nice read, very inspiring. glad i read it. Congratulations Ruchi, Regards to Sandeep. best wishes, Beth.
Thought provoking article. Made me sit back and ponder on a very vital question ” Am I really in control of my life ?”
I have always taken pride in thinking that I have been taking all my decisions boldly and independently whether it was choosing my life partner or more mundane tasks like picking up a dish from a menu card . But this article is making me think whether those decisions were really independent or am I just a pawn in the hands of situations and circumstances and many of my decisions have just been efforts to buy peace of mind and remain in mu cozy comfort zone ?
Need to ponder and find out the answers . The quest begins …..
Every word is heartfelt !! Every feeling well expressed !!
Superb !!!!! Its an excellent reminder of valuing yourself to an extent that u can stand up for everything . Their is nothing wrong being you and most importantly one should be totally convinced with the creation of god i.e. YOU as mentioned above.