Waterproof Feathers - H2H #12
Do we really have a choice not to take things personally? When someone says something that is hurtful for whatever reason, something that offends us, can we actually choose not to be reactive, and to let whatever it is roll off us like the proverbial water off a duck's back? How does our own self awareness, our own guilty feelings, our shadow-self factor in to dealing with moments like that?
Full disclosure, it's something that's hard for me. I'm almost guaranteed to take comments personally even when they're not even all that negative, or not intended to be. I'm also not at all transparent about that. I'll brood, and get all filled with attitude. It's something I'm actively working on.
That moment of taking a breath, counting to three, and then expressing myself without sounding reactive or accusatory is not coming easily. Phrases that address what's going on in the moment fly from my head, but in an ideal world, I might respond with:
(breath - silence), then, "I feel _________ when I hear that." and/or "did you mean to __________"
Still, it's a work in progress to remain a calm, spiritually centered person when raging emotions and an overdeveloped inner critic are beating you black and blue inside.
How do you deal with moments when you take things personally?
