Other People and Their Opinions

Remember trying desperately to fit in at high school? Spending hours pondering whether or not you were cool? Or funny? Or smart? Or pretty? Back then, we were caught up trying to evolve in a fishbowl full of judgy peers and Social norms. Yet even now, many of us still fret about what others think of us, from our boss or our kids to the random person in the grocery store. The desire to be accepted is so innate that it can supersede rational thinking and influence all kinds of decisions.

Perhaps you are one of those lucky women who has always marched to the beat of your own drummer. If so, I admire the heck out you. But for the majority of us, the increase of social media can make it a challenge to keep our eyes on our own papers so to speak—especially as we reach midlife. Once again, we may be questioning our place in the greater scheme of things, especially when everyone’s picture-perfect lives can open up our own feelings of “compare and despair.”

Why does it seem that everyone else is always on stunning vacations? Or lifting a mimosa at … Continue reading..