What is it about our "SELF-IMAGE"?

For a few days now I have been reading a book which persuaded me to be back to blogging after a break of more than 18 months. 18 months!!!!! It’s long time that has gone unnoticed and flown away like the sand falling down from closed fists. It seems it took no more than 18 days for these 18 months to pass. Well, coming back to the point that I want to emphasize here; what is it about our self image? I seriously never gave a realistic thought to it, but now I sincerely understand and feel that our growth or for that matter our downfall is the outcome of how we perceive the self-image of ours.

Imagine you are playing a game of Cricket and it’s you who is going to decide your fate for that game. Before we even play the shot we visualize what’s going to happen. We visualize missing the shot and failing to tear it apart across the boundary line. We play the shot and end up missing it. Our mind thinks in advance and we complete the thought. But why do we think so negative? Maybe because we are intimidated of the opponent’s game, stature, pressure or maybe because of less confidence that we have on our own. I would go for the last reason. That’s the reason Sehwag has succeeded. His mind is so uncluttered. He gives a damn to who the bowler is. He has said it hundreds of times that it’s the ball that matters and not the bowler. He has immense confidence on himself because he has created a positive self-image of his own.

Why do we always compare ourselves with peers, friends, society? Why do we feel “I wish I could be as good as him/her”; Why? God has never been partial. If your friend, peer is better off in one specific skill or aspect why don’t we understand and derive confidence from the fact that we would definitely be better in some other skill, aspect. In fact, the very fact that s/he is better than us in one skill, aspect should motivate us to work even harder and improve ourselves to such a level where we could introspect and conclude that “Yes, I have improved compared to the last time, I have now become a much better person”. Instead, we end up cribbing. That’s because we don’t see ourselves as potent enough to better ourselves. We have created a very poor self-image of ourselves. We are just adding negativity to our inner being. With all these negativities (from every individual) coming together we are just viciously multiplying the negativity in world.

The solution to this I think is setting a benchmark where we would be competing with our self and not anyone else. Let’s stop cribbing and enjoying the life, let’s start to have a positive outlook towards the life, let’s build a healthy self-image,.

Have you ever noticed that when anyone gives a call or for that matter speaks with you in person and says “Hey, you were outstanding at doing it”. How do you feel? You start feeling “Wow!!!!” That adds up to your confidence levels and you start feeling healthier (inner being). So to all those people who would read this post I would request you to pick up your cell or walk down to one of your peers, friends, colleagues and appreciate him/her for that one thing that he/she is better at. Let’s at least help them build a healthy self-image. Sometime, someday later he/she might reciprocate something similar to you and this will help us create a virtuous (multiplying positively) cycle of “healthy self-images”.