Joy Ignites Success

  The biblical principle “Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them do Unto You”, commonly known as The Golden Rule stems from Jesus turning Quid Pro Quo upside down. And yes, it’s a great principle. Treating others well is respectful, kind and good for emotional, physical, and spiritual health.
    But I think we have a bigger problem. I believe most of the time, most of us treat others better than we treat ourselves. We are kind and loving and supportive and take time out of our day to do favors and pick friends up when they’re down. But when you’re down? Are you kind and loving and encouraging? Not from what I can see. It’s more likely you follow the “kick them when they’re down” philosophy with yourself.
    Think about it. The last time you overindulged, or didn’t meet a deadline, or said something slightly inappropriate, did you then say to yourself “ there, there sweetie, it’s okay, you’ll do better next time”? I think not. If I know you, and I do, because we’re not so different, you scolded yourself, felt disappointed in yourself, and compared yourself to everyone you know who does it better.
   With every cell in my body I want to scream “Stop It”. It’s not nice. It’s not kind. And it doesn’t work! Beating yourself up is violence. Being cruel to yourself is cruelty just the same as being cruel to another or to an animal. If you wouldn’t do it to them, why is okay to do it to you?

I hope I’ve gotten your attention. If you’re up for it, accept this as an assignment. Spend this week contemplating this question: “If I abhor violence in the world, how is it okay for me to be violent (verbally counts) with myself?”
    You may encounter an internal argument about why it’s necessary to be hard on yourself. If you do, watch for next week’s blog that will address how that doesn’t work either.   

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