Sullins Stuart - September 3, 2022

Are you overly self-critical? Do you set unrealistic expectations and then beat yourself up if or when you don’t meet your expectations? Are you kinder to others than you are to yourself?  

If so, you are not alone. Truth be told, I do this, too.

When I wrote my first book, Living in Conscious Harmony, I remember constantly revising it to the point that I finally had to say, “Enough!” and just publish it, otherwise I’d never do it and the inner critic in my head that kept saying it wasn’t good enough or that no one would read it, would defeat me. 

You may have dreams or goals that you haven’t pursued or completed all because of your “inner critic.”

Well, I want to encourage you to tell that inner critic to shut the hell up.

I truly believe each of us has a unique talent or gift to share with the world and we owe it to ourselves and to those who need our gifts, to give them expression, to give them life. 

Maybe your gift is photography, poetry, drawing, or painting. Maybe you have within you the next great American novel or maybe you are a fantastic motivator and should be public speaking or teaching. Either way, if your talent remains locked within you because of your inner critic, no one will ever benefit from it. 

I truly believe one of the reasons we are on this beautiful planet is that we are here to live a life in which we make our goals and dreams a reality. We just have to define what we want, make a plan, believe in ourselves, and take action. It's truly a strategy for success. If you don't believe me, ask someone who has achieved a goal or dream how they did it. In fact, it's why I wrote my second book Imagine Believe Become. Because the strategy works. Trust me, if I can do it, you can too. 

And when you create something and put it out there for the world to see, don't care what someone else may think. Often those who criticize do so because they don't have the courage to put themselves or their art out there. It takes vulnerability. Something they lack.   

Futhermore, I want to encourage you to take the time to turn the love, affection, and patience you have for others and direct it inward, to yourself.

Buddha said, “You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”

And for many people, this is very hard to do, as I struggle with this too. Be patient, take baby steps. 

Life is too damn short to be hard on yourself. I'm about to turn 57 and I'm just now figuring this out. Better late than never, right?

So, go out there, be a creator. Give your goals and dreams a chance to manifest, critics be damned. And be nicer to yourself. It takes courage to pursue a dream. If you find it easy to be a cheerleader for others, then be sure and become a cheerleader for yourself, too. Trust me, you are worth it.