Now don't misunderstand me. There's nothing wrong with wanting people to like you. We're human beings. We all want to belong. But there's a huge difference between enjoying people's approval...and needing it.
Because the moment you need everyone to like you...you hand them control over your life. You stop asking, "What do I want?" And you start asking,"What will they think?"
That's a prison. One of the biggest prisons we ever build. The strange thing is, most of us don't even realise we're living in it.
We edit ourselves. We stay quiet. We avoid difficult conversations. We become the person we think everyone else wants us to be.
Until one day we wake up...and realise we've spent years playing a part. And this is where I believe we've misunderstood positive thinking.
Positive thinking tells us to become more confident. I think confidence appears naturally...when you stop carrying the need for everyone else's approval.
It's another layer hiding who you really are.
Imagine Michelangelo standing in front of a block of marble. He didn't add David. He removed everything that wasn't David.
Perhaps that's what we need to do with our lives. Not add confidence, but remove approval because here's the truth. Some people will never like you. No matter how kind you are. No matter how hard you try. No matter how much you change yourself.
And here's something even more important. The people who matter don't need you to pretend. They simply need you to be real.
So instead of asking, "How can I make everyone like me?" Ask yourself... "What would I do today if I wasn't afraid of someone else's opinion?"
That question has the power to change your life. Because every time you stop living for approval... you remove another piece of marble.
And underneath...you'll find someone extraordinary. Not someone new, but the person who was there all along.
If this message has resonated with you, I'd love you to subscribe. Every week we're removing another unnecessary belief... another unnecessary fear... another piece of marble.
Because you're not broken. You never were.
